Drifting Away
by xIchigox
Summary: SQ to Melting a Heart of Ice-As Kaiba heals from his pain, Tea’s has just started. When her mother is put at risk, she is forced to do something that she can not handle, making those she cared for drift away from her.Will Kaiba help her or leave her too
1. Unexpected News

Ichigo- MUAH! I'm back guys! Yes, this is the sequal to Melting a Heart Of Ice. Thanks for the 135 reviews you guys gave to me on that story! I really appreciated it! ^_^

Bakura- and thus the torture starts again

Ichigo- ha! I'm so cool!

Kaiba- -_- no you're not

Ichigo-shut up! Anyways, this is the sequal and  you won't understand it if you haven't read the first story…okay maybe you will, but…so! Anways, Kaiba! The disclaimer! Now! !

Kaiba-arg…again with the Kaiba torturing. Anyways, Yu-gi-oh does not belong to us because we are artistically challenged. 

Ichigo- HEY! I can draw! *draws a picture of Yugi* see!

Some random person- *sees picture* ahh! That's such a cute picture of a raccoon!

Ichigo- GAH! 

Bakura- -_- anyways, on with the story! 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

_~I think of you and that alone is enough to make the tears start to flow now._                                                                                     My Will, Inuyasha 

Chapter 1- Unexpected News__

            "I don't care if you have to go across state to get that package," Kaiba yelled irritably into his cell phone, "I don't care if you have to go around the world to get it! Just get me that package by Thursday or you'll have bigger things to worry about!" Kaiba snapped his cell phone and dug it inside his pocket.

            Tea walked inside the room, peering through it as if she was a stranger. She spotted Kaiba and smiled at him. Kaiba jerked his head and looked awkwardly at her.

            "What," Kaiba said suspiciously.

            "Grouchy this morning huh," Tea smiled and cocked her head. Kaiba shook his head and stared at the TV screen in front of him.

            "Whatever floats your boat," Kaiba said blankly. Kaiba stopped staring and looked at her curiously. "How did you get inside my house?"

            "There's a thing called a door, Seto," Tea said, smiling like a little child. She carried the plate of cookies across the room and sat down next to Kaiba. Kaiba smiled at her and took at cookie. Without looking, Kaiba took a cookie and took a bite of it, still smiling at Tea. 

            "And I guess you got this on the table," Kaiba asked. Tea laughed.

            "Where else," Tea asked, "You know I can't cook." Kaiba smiled and nodded his head in agreement.

            "That is true," Kaiba started, "Compared to your cooking, this cookie is one of the best foods I ever ate." Tea shoved the rest of the cookie into his mouth and smiled victoriously at him. 

            "Good going there," Kaiba said sarcastically, trying to swallow. It was two days after what happened in the park on Christmas Eve. Since then, everything changed. Kaiba's attitude toward some people, Tea's feelings, and the gang's perspective all changed. 

            All of a sudden, Tea's cell phone started to ring. Tea happily flipped it open and spoke into her cell.

            "Hello," Tea's voice asked. A man's deep voice arose in a very strict manner.

            "Ms. Gardener," the man on the other line spoke gravely.

            "Yes," Tea's eyebrows rose up in worry. Something in the man's voice shook her into trembles. 

"It's about your parents," the man said in a low voice. She listened for a moment and stood still as her face went pale. Kaiba looked at her worriedly. Tea's mouth dropped slightly as the tears welled up in her eyes. Tea let go of her cell as it dropped and crashed to the floor. Kaiba stood up immediately to look at the pale stricken face. Tea's hand suddenly covered her mouth as she began to fall to her knees. Kaiba caught her in time as they both fell to the floor with Kaiba holding Tea. Kaiba looked at her and saw the familiar face that he once knew. The face he had when he was young. He knew what happened. Tea's eyes were wide with fear as she breathed in deeply. Things were changing almost too fast. Tea just sat there staring at the floor with Kaiba's arms around her, unable to stop the tears from flowing down. 

_~-__My distant voice can't reach you now, but so that someday it definitely will…_

Ichigo- There goes my chippie! Don't worry, this will probably be the shortest chippie in this story. The others will be much more longer!

Kaiba- -_- great..

Ichigo- I know! 

Bakura- …shut up…

Ichigo- you really do want me to have you bit by Tea's dog huh?

Bakura- 0.0 urr..I meant, shut up so I can admire your awesomeness! 

Ichigo- ^_^ Please review guys! It makes me happy and more eager to post the 2nd chippie! 


	2. Shock

Ichigo- oh yay! Yes thanks for the reviews! 

Kaiba- Impressive…

Ichigo- why do you say so? ^_^

Kaiba- Because I thought that you would only get 1 review for that chippie…

Ichigo- HEY!

Bakura- *eating cake* hello…

Ichigo- *slaps head* whatever..anyways…thanks and please review! On with the freakin chippie!

Metling A Heart Of Ice Chapt. 2- Shock 

~Flashback~

            "Hello," Tea answered the ring to her cell phone.

            "Ms. Gardener," the man's voice spoke on the other line. Tea raised an eyebrow in curiosity.

            "Yes," Tea asked.

            "It's about your parents," the man spoke again. Tea stood there and she stood up straight. Something was wrong. The way the man spoke on the other line, it was…strange. Tea did not say a word, letting the person start to talk again. " Your parents are dead. As you already know, they were leaving after their vacation ended. But there was a slight problem with the plane that they took. For some odd reason, the pilot could not stir the plane and the plane went downhill, crashing about 200 meters from the ground. Luckily, most of the passengers were not dead, but severely injured. That being your parents too. The bad news is, both of they were not able to live throughout the whole drive to the hospital." Tea stopped listening the man on the other line, trying to consume the words he was speaking. Her face went pale with terror as she dropped the phone.

~End of Flashback~

            Tea sat frozen on the floor of Kaiba's mansion. She wrapped her arms around herself and Kaiba gently rocked back and forth. He noticed the phone on the ground and realized that Tea did not hang up yet. Kaiba grabbed the cell and placed it on his ear. All he heard was the dial tone.

_ That idiot hung up. _Kaiba shook his head and looked at the pale stricken Tea. Kaiba cleared his throat. He didn't know what to say. Everything was so sudden. Just like the last time he lost someone. He didn't know what to do then, he didn't know what to do now. Tea sat quietly, tears forming in her eyes. 

            "Tea," Kaiba began, but suddenly got cut off but Tea's hand rising up. She wanted silence. She turned her opened hand into a fist and clenched it near her heart.

            She felt sick. Dizzy. Her head spun around in circle as she tried to understand everything. Certainly it wasn't _her _parents. Maybe the person had mistaken their bodies for someone's else. Maybe…But how did he find out her name? It was true. They were gone. Forever. Tea stood up and slowly walked out the door of Kaiba's mansion. She stumbled into the bright sunshine that greeted her. She raised her hand in front of her eyes to cover the sunrays coming her way. 

            She walked home. She was going to spend the rest of her Christmas break all alone…She was going to spend the rest of her life like this. Without someone who cared. Who loved her. She quickened her pace and opened the door to her house. She looked around. Everything was different now. It felt so different. 

Tea slowly walked in, peering though the rooms. She went into the living room where she found a picture frame of her parents and her after a ballet recital. Her parents' smile glimmering back at her. She noticed that young proud girl in the picture, smiling triumphantly. Tea closed her eyes as memories started to flow back.

_Honey, you did great. You should be proud of yourself. _Tea imagined her mom saying that to her back at the recital. _We could have never been prouder. We love you._ A tear streamed down her face as she gripped the frame and threw it at the wall, making a little dent in it. Tea closed her eyes as she began to sob. She pressed her back to the wall as she slowly sat on the floor with her knees to her chest. Her eyes were red and puffy as she slowly opened them. Everything was a blur until she wiped her tears away.

She sat up and went upstairs to her room to lay on her bed for some moment of peace.

~~~~~~~~~~

            Kaiba sat on one of the hospital seats, holding the hand of Mokuba. His little brother lay in the bed, unconscious. His face went to the side, letting the sun beam on it through the window. Kaiba brush the strands of hair off of his brother's face to look at it. He still didn't forgive himself. He should have been looking after him. He knew his was growing to happen. He never forgot that day where he saw that wood punctured into the side of Mokuba. He never forgot the day when the doctor told him that the major head injury caused by the car crash would give him a coma. And now Kaiba waited for Mokuba to wake up. Kaiba rubbed his face with his hands and sighed. It's only a matter of time.

            Kaiba got up and paced around the room. What happened earlier was crazy. He had never seen Tea all shocked and disturbed as much as today. He would never have believed that happy, perky Tea fell to her knees crying in pain. Kaiba's heart twisted as his stomach gave a turn. He remembered that feeling when he stood there, seeing his mother die in the hospital bed. Not even remembering how his dad died in that car accident. In some sort of way, Kaiba was almost relieved. He found someone. He actually found someone that could relate to his problems. No. Not really. Tea didn't see her parents die. She didn't go even half of what he went through his whole life. His life was totally different from hers.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

            Ring! Ring! Joey held the phone into his ear, trying to listen for a voice. The gang sat around the Turtle Shop, talking. Suddenly, Joey heard the other line pick up, but to his dismay, the person hung up. Joey frowned.

            Tea lay in her bed, looking at the ceiling. She heard another ring coming from her home phone. She closed her eyes and picked it up before slamming it back onto the receiver.

            Joey raised his eyebrow and looked at the gang.

            "That's funny," Joey started, "Tea isn't answering the phone." Kikyo and Yami stopped talking together and looked at Joey curiously.

            "But Tea always answers her phone," Yami said. Kikyo bit her lip. Maybe something was wrong. But…how could it be. Just yesterday, everything was picture perfect. Nothing could just suddenly go worse. Can it? Kikyo shook his head slightly and forced a smile on her face as Yami looked her and smiled comfortably. Yami pulled back her hair behind her ears and looked at her.

            "I'm sure its nothing," Yami reassured Kikyo. Kikyo nodded quickly.

            "I know," Kikyo said. "I just think…we should be more, well, serious about it." Kikyo said. Yami nodded and jumped off the counter where the register stood next to him. Joey looked at some duel monster cards on the shelves. He took one and started to look at many, by taking a handful of them.

            "That's $20.50," Yami said gleefully. Yami looked up from the cash register and smiled at Joey whose jaw dropped down.

            "Oh come on, Yami," Joey whined, "Cut a pal some slack." Yami brought his hand out.

            "Give me the money or the cards," Yami said, smiling. Joey sighed and handed the pack of cards he was holding. Yami just held his hand out longer. Joey whined and put the rest of the packs that he had into his hands. Yami smiled.

            "Thank you for shopping at the Turtle Shop," Yami said.  Joey laughed sarcastically as the whole gang smiled. Tristan smiled at Joey and slouched down into his chair.

            "Why won't you get a job or something," Tristan started. Joey turned around.

            "I hardly have time finishing my homework and you expect me to get a job,"  Joey asked. Tristan raised an eyebrow.

            "You hardly have time? What do you do then," Tristan smirked, "Don't tell me you're still going out with that cake of yours." Joey threw a pack of cards at Tristan's forehead.

            "Haha," Joey said sarcastically, "But I just can't get those math problems and ela questions, and science experiments and everything! Ya know?" Tristan shook his head.

            "Sorry bud, but nope," Tristan said. Joey shrugged.

            "Guess I was born dumb," Joey said, "Well, I guess you can get everything you want. I got the good looks, but the smarts is another thing." The gang laughed.

~~~~~~~~~~~

            Tea laid on her bed with her hands behind her head. She moved to the side and looked at the window. Something was ringing was inside her purse as Tea watched the trees. Tea just ignored it until it got to her nerves. She sat up and flipped the cover of it open. She placed it on her ear and began to lie down again. 

            "Hello," Tea's voice said softly. 

            "Ms. Gardener," the familiar responded on the other line. "It seemed that you hung up on our last call." Tea closed her eyes and then slowly opened that, thinking that all of this was just a dream. It wasn't. Tea cleared her throat.

            "It seemed so," Tea's said steadily. She didn't want to speak to anybody and the man on the other line was the least one she wanted to talk to. 

            "Well, I think we should continue where we left off," the man said. Tea turned red as she got up and sat on her bed.

            "Maybe we shouldn't," Tea said irritably, "Who are you, really? Is this some kind of sadistic joke you and your friends like pulling? Cuz' if it is, then you can just cut it out because I had enough of it." Tea waited for an answer.

            "Ms. Gardener," the guy spoke again, very sincere and deep. Tea's face relaxed as her eyes drooped. It wasn't a joke. It was for real. "My name is Squal. No, this isn't a joke. I am just calling to get matters done." Tea sighed. 

            "Go ahead," Tea said.

            "We will need you to come to the police office today so you can come with us to identify your parents' bodies."

            "But you already know it is theirs," Tea said, "Why do you need me?"

            "To make sure," Squal replied, "Also, we have some paper work for you to fill in. Do you have any relatives living in your area?" Tea raised a eyebrow. Suddenly her eyes widened. They were going to take her away. Take her away from her home and her friends. She can't depart from them. They were the ones that kept her in that happy mood of hers. They supported each other and this was one of the times she wanted to reach out to them. Tea shook her head.

            "No," Tea replied. There was a pause.

            "Is there any adult supervisor of some sort?"

            "No," Tea said again. 

            "Okay, well, be at the station at 6 tonight," Squal said slowly. Tea nodded her head.

            "O-okay," Tea pressed the end button and shoved it into her purse. She got outside and went to the driveway. Tea pouted at the empty driveway as she remembered that she took it to the shop for repair. _Great. That's just fine and dandy. _ Just to her luck though, a black corvette drove at the side of the road and parked in front of her house. Tea cocked her head to the left as she watched the car move. The door opened and out came Seto Kaiba. 

            Kaiba turned around and saw Tea looking at him. He faked a smile at her and walked toward her.

            Tea stood up straight and looked at Kaiba walking her way. Kaiba looked down as he kept his hands behind his back. His eyes looked up and he stood in front of Tea.

            "Kinda missed ya there when you ran out like that," Kaiba awkwardly. He didn't know what to say. Tea forced a smile and cocked her head.

            "Yea," Tea said. Silence fell upon them, but Tea finally spoke up. "Um, will you bring me to the police station?" Kaiba looked up and raised a eyebrow.

            "Why do you need to go," Kaiba asked. 

            "Paperwork and stuff," Tea said. "for…well, you know already." Tea looked away as she wiped a tear away. She cleared her throat and looked at him. "So, will you?"

Kaiba shrugged.

            "Sure," Kaiba said. He walked Tea into his car and opened the door for her. Tea slowly walked in and stared across the road. They drove around to the police station where they got out and walked toward the two glass doors. They watched as men and women in black and blue walked quickly across the room. Suddenly a tall, skinny yet muscular man that looked to be in his early 20's walked toward them.  He was holding a stack of papers and gestured them to follow him. 

            They followed him into an office. A coat rack stood in the corner holding a jacket while a wooden desk stood in the middle with papers scattered everywhere.

            "I assume you must be tea Gardener," the officer began, "May I see your id please?" Tea reached into her purse and opened her wallet. She showed him the id as the man nodded in approval. Squal looked over to Seto Kaiba who immediately stared back.     

            "Yes?" Kaiba said coldly, "Is there some reason why you are staring at me?" Squal raised an eyebrow.

            "Yes, in a matter a fact," Squal said, "Who might you be?" Kaiba looked at him weirdly.

            "Seto Kaiba," Kaiba sneered. He rolled his eyes and walked to the back of the room, "I'm just her ride." Squal nodded and turned to go out of the door.

            "Follow me," he said. He led them in a car and opened the back door as Kaiba and Tea went in. He closed in and went to the driver's side. He sat and started the engine.

            Tea fumbled with her hands and as she sast quietly in the compacted car. Squal look in the mirror and laid his eyes on Tea._ Another kid with no parents. Gotta be the hardest thing for that girl…_Squal turned his head and looked beyond the street. _Welcome to the club, Tea. _ Tea bit her lip. She stared at the building that they were just entering. Her face turned pale as she was walking toward the door. She got in with Kaiba's hand holding hers. She gripped his harder as Squal entered a room with silver looking cabinets. She watched as he searched the titles of each one. He stopped at one and looked at Tea to come over. She looked at Kaiba and Kaiba nodded back. 

            Kaiba shook his head. He remembered this place. He didn't want to be here. He looked at Tea, who was slowly walking towards the cabinets, her arms wrapped around herself. He sighed deeply. _Tea…be strong… _In all his life, he never noticed anyone as strong as she. Emotionally strong. Tea was always the first one to stand up for her friends. She could handle anything that was put in front of her. She can withstand any obstacle. _But…what about this one? _

            Tea gripped the handle and opened it slightly. She opened it wider, not wanting to see what was inside. She breathed and peeked in, only to immediately shut the door. She placed her back towards the wall and stared at Squal and Kaiba. She shook her head as tears welled up.

            "I-I don't want to see it," tea said repeatedly. "I can't." Squal placed a shoulder on Tea.

            "I'm sorry," Squal began, "But you have to identify your parents." Tea turned around and stared at the door. She again gripped the handle and opened it widely. A table slid out with plastic covering the body. It was stilled dressed in clothes, but the skin was pale. Tea stepped back and covered her mouth. It was her father. Her father, who used to be so caring and strong, was now…something that she didn't want to see. She stared at the pale-wrinkled body that represented her father. She suddenly slid the table back and shut the door. 

Squal looked down. He had done this thousand of times. But why wasn't he used to it by now? He shook his head. He pointed at the cabinet above it. Tea opened that one too, slowly, very slowly. Another table slid out. Tea stared at it. Her eyes widened. She shook her head. 

            "No," Tea said repeatedly, shaking her head, "nonononononono." Tea trembled as she shut the door and pressed her hands toward the door. Kaiba immediately took Tea in his arms as she buried her face in his chest, still saying "no."

            Squal looked at her and he stepped forward. He cleared his throat and placed her hands behind his back."I know this is upsetting to you, Ms. Gardener. To see your parents again." Tea looked at him and then at Kaiba. She let go of Kaiba's grasp and face them both. She shook her head as tears formed in her eyes.

            "No," Tea said softly, "That…that woman in there." Tea looked down and then stared at the cabinet that she just saw. Kaiba and Squal were filled with confusion. 

            "Yea," Kaiba said. Tea looked at them with pain in her eyes.

            "That woman," Tea said a little softer, "She's not my mother."

Ichigo- MUAHAHAHA! Never thought that didja?!?!!

Kaiba- I did…

Ichigo- well..uh..shut up!

Bakura- anyways, please review guys!

Ichigo- see! It's longer than the 1st chippie! Yay! *eats ice cream*

Bakura- hey! That's mine!

Ichigo- You don't see it in your hands, do you?

Bakura- no, but-

Ichigo- HA! So it isn't yours! 

Kaiba- *shakes head* weirdo….anyways, review! No flames!

Ichigo- cuz they kill forests!

Kaiba and Bakura- O.o__


	3. A New Presence

Ichigo- happy turkey day!

Kaiba- -_- thanksgiving already passed…

Ichigo-….happy b-lated turkey day

Bakura- holding a turkey wing, everyday is turkey day if you have turkey!

Ichigo- tis a day to be thankful! Thanks for the reviews! Ah the joy of reviewers! They bring joy to every author ^_^

Kaiba- *eating* who made the stuffing? Now that's what I call good turkey!

Ichigo- I did! And can you believe!?!!?! It still tastes good even after I dropped it on the ground! ^_^

Kaiba- *spits out food* nice, that's just nice Ichigo -_-

Bakura- ^_^ it is, isn't it?!?!? *still eating* 

Ichigo- anyways! On with the story!

Melting A Heart Of Ice- A New Presence

Tea stared beyond the road as Kaiba drove her back to her house. Her eyes were now puffy and dry from all the tears that ran down her face. Everything was a blur now. Her whole world was crushing down. Things that she thought could never happen did happen. And even when she got things straight, something seemed to eat away at her. Where was her mother? Why wasn't she with her dad? Tea bit her bottom lip and stared outside the window. Everything was changing. She knew that. She just didn't want to accept it. 

            Kaiba pulled into her drive and turned his car off. He relaxed a bit and looked at Tea.

            "You going to be okay," Kaiba asked, raising his eyebrows. Tea looked at him and nodded. 

            "Yea, of course," Tea said, forcing a smile on her face. "I'm okay, now." Kaiba frowned. She didn't seem okay back in the building. She didn't look like it anyways. He couldn't blame her. They had to go threw every single cabinet to check. Tea almost threw up by the site of all the people who lost their lives.

            "You know you can stay over my house, right," Kaiba said reassuringly. Tea nodded. The sun beamed on her face as she gazed at Kaiba.

            "Yea, I know," Tea said, "I just…want to be alone. You know?" Kaiba nodded and quickly gave her a kiss on the cheek. 

            Tea walked inside her house again. She looked around the void room and walked to turn on the lights. Suddenly the room filled with brightness. She looked at her watch that 7:5. She rubbed her face gently and decided to go upstairs to go sleep. This day was too much for her. All that she hoped for was sleep for the whole day.

------------------------

            Kaiba drove down the street to the to the hospital. He sighed deeply as he gripped the steering wheel carefully. _This is just too much for Tea to handle. _He shook his head ferociously and turned the radio on, blasting it to fill the whole car. It seemed to drain out all those negative thoughts. _Maybe I should get Mokuba some flowers before I get to the hospital. _He jerked the steering wheel left toward the center of Domino City. Kaiba drove down looking at the stores. _ Or maybe some videogames or…what the heck?_

Kaiba quickly stepped on the brakes as someone jumped out of nowhere in front of his car. Kaiba squinted, trying to see who the idiot was that stupidly jumped in front. Kaiba rolled his eyes as he saw a blonde-haired guy running toward him like a little monkey. Kaiba couldn't help but smile. He shook his head and then quickly set his cold, emotionless face. He then saw 3 other guys follow behind the guy. Kaiba lowered his window, looking straight ahead. The group neared his car.

"Hey Chihuahua," Kaiba said in a steady voice. The group neared his car.

Joey smiled.

            "Hey, come on," Joey said cheerfully. "Thought we were friends and all, eh?" Joey dug his hands into his pockets, breathing out white mist. "Sure is cold out here."

Kaiba smirked and looked at him suspiciously.

            "You didn't just come here for natural talk, Joey," Kaiba said boldly, "What is it? As much as I'm your friend, I'm still in the zone of having to talk to no one." Kaiba smiled.

            "Ah, you loser," Joey joked, "You and your anti-social ways." Joey shook his head in mock disappointment. Kaiba cocked his head.

            "I'm not anti-social," Kaiba began, starting up his engine again, "I just don't like talking to weird people…like some people I know," Kaiba smirked at Joey. Joey's hair swayed from left to right as his shoulders rose up and then slouched back down. Yugi came up to the window, although the only thing that Kaiba could see was the top of his hair.

            "ummm…Yugi," Kaiba asked. He watched the tri-colored hair move from side to side and then heard a voice come threw.

            "Yeah," Yugi said innocently. 

            "Maybe you should stand on your toes," Kaiba said, trying to hide his smile. From beneath him, Yugi raised an eyebrow in confusion.   

            "Why," Yugi asked. He cocked his head to the right and waited for an answer. Tristan walked in.

            "Maybe because Kaiba is talking to your hair and you're talking to a car door," Tristan smiled. Bakura elbowed him and looked down at Yugi.

            "Stop giving Yugi a rough time," Bakura said cheerfully, "It's not everyday you get to talk to a car door." Yugi laughed sarcastically.

            "Funny," Yugi in return, "Maybe you should take that wig of yours and give it back to Santa Claus. You know he wants his beard back." Joey laughed stupidly and looked at Bakura.

            "Burn!" Joey yelled at Bakura, smiling. "That's not even a burn! That's a double burn! It's a second degree burn!" Bakura looked at Joey and a second later he punched him on the shoulder. Joey looked dumbly at Bakura while clutching his arm. "Dude," Joey said in his New Yorker voice, "You do know that hurts! It's a amazing how freakin strong you are, and yet you get beat up a lot." Bakura punched him again and smiled. Joey stomped his foot. "Ow! Gah! Stop it, will ya!" Bakura shrugged.

            "Okay." Bakura whistled quietly. Joey smiled mischievously at Bakura and went up to his ear.

            "Burn!" Joey whispered loudly. Bakura rolled his eyes and punched him again. Yugi shook his head and tried to stand on his toes, though it was quite excruciating.

            "We haven't heard from Tea in a long time," Yugi said worriedly, "we tried calling her but she-," 

            "She got a call," Kaiba interrupted, suddenly grave and cold, "Her dad died and her mother is nowhere to be seen." The whole gang stopped laughing, the cold shrill wind swept through them as they stomachs twisted into a tiny ball. Kaiba continued, "The funeral is scheduled two days from now. At the funeral home. I suppose you guys are coming?" Yugi ignored the comment and started to pace around nervously.

            "We have to see Tea," he said, as if in his own world. "We just have to. We have to be there for her." Kaiba shook his head.

            "She wanted to be alone," Kaiba said, a thud coming from his heart. "Trust me. She does." Joey wrapped his arms around himself and breathed in deeply, trying to consume everything. "Now if you'll excuse, I have more important things to do." Kaiba sped off leaving the group.

---------------------------------

            Kaiba drove off to the hospital after buying a bouquet of daises and white roses for Mokuba. He opened the door to the room slowly, hearing it creak slightly. He looked at the sleeping kid with bushy hair and took a seat next to him. Kaiba breathed in to slowly put away the nervousness of him. Just seeing Mokuba this way broke his heart.

            "Sorry you missed Christmas, Moky," Kaiba said, saying Mokuba's childhood name again. "Really wished you were there and all." He held Mokuba's hand gently, giving it a little squeeze of hope and then letting go. Kaiba rubbed his hands together and then rubbed his temple. He gazed at the lifeless body that stood by him. Then you remembered back at the morgue where Tea saw her father, dead. A shell with no life into it. Something was happening. He didn't know what it was, but he had this feeling that worse things were going to come. It seemed like that his whole life. Just when things were turning up in Kaiba's life, Tea's world came crashing down…quickly. Kaiba flicked a strand of hair blocking Mokuba's face and then smiled at him. Mokuba looked so peaceful. Kaiba wondered how Mokuba could handle so much throughout his entire life. Then he realized that he mostly protected him from all the bad things that were coming at them. He remembered the first time he knew that Gazaburo was not what he seemed to be.

------------

Flashback

------------  
            "Come on, Seto," Mokuba wailed happily, dragging his brother outside his room. His face was plastered with a smile that was worth millions. His hair bounce up and down his he jumped down the stairs. Kaiba frowned slightly, frustrated that his little brother kept tugging at his shoulder. He cringed whenever Mokuba accidentally gripped the scrape that was hidden under his long sleeve. 

            "Mokuba, slow down," Seto said frantically, "You know he'll get mad if we run around the house. He always does." The toddler in front of him looked oddly at his older brother and cocked his head to the right.

            "He gets mad at you," Mokuba said curiously. Kaiba looked around, peering slightly through the room.

            "Sometimes," Kaiba said. He looked at his brother's worried face and quickly forced a smile, "but don't worry." Mokuba shrugged and resumed his smile and laughter.

            "Come on then Seto," Mokuba exclaimed, grabbing his brother's hand. "Playing won't hurt you." Kaiba bit his lip.

            _You have no idea. _Kaiba thought to himself.  Mokuba grabbed a bat from the closet and sneaked outside. He turned around and raised his hand to tell Seto to come over. Kaiba reluctantly came up, looking around the house. 

            "Come on Seto, throw the ball!" Mokuba said, holding the bat upright in hitting position. Kaiba smiled slightly and threw the ball gently. Surprised, Kaiba watch as Mokuba slam the ball with the bat. Suddenly, he heard a crash and Kaiba rushed straight to his house. His eyes grew wide with fear, heart beating faster and faster. He gulped slowly as Mokuba ran to him. Suddenly, he could hear Gazaburo yelling his name. 

            The broad man, practically 3 times the size of Seto, marched up to the little kid and took him by the collar. Kaiba grimaced in pain, his eyes squinting.

            "What happened to the window," Gazaburo growled, glaring at the boy. Mokuba bit his lower lip and stepped back. Gazaburo jerked his head toward the younger brother and threw Seto to the floor. The giant hovered over Mokuba as Mokuba crouched underneath.

            "You did this, didn't you," Gazaburo asked harshly. "Come on. We'll handle this inside." Seto caught up slowly, eyeing his stepfather. He looked at the pale-frightened Mokuba and nodded at him.  He slowly entered the house after Gazaburo, followed by Mokuba. Once Mokuba entered though, Gazaburo pushed him to the ground, slamming the door shut. The young Kaiba whimpered in pain, holding his left cheek. Gazaburo's face was red with anger. "Get up!" Gazaburo screamed at Mokuba. Seto watched in horror at what was taking place, his eyes on the verge of tears.  He watched his little get slapped for the first time as Seto clutched his hands into a ball. He stood there until he couldn't take it all. 

            "I did it," Seto said abruptly. He stepped foreword as Gazaburo stopped the abuse. "I did it," He lied again, "Mokuba didn't do anything. We were playing baseball…and I was the one who the ball and broke the window" Gazaburo was furious. He grabbed onto Seto's arm as he dragged him upstairs where he was beat.

---------------------------

            Kaiba shook his head. That was quite a trip to memory lane. He shook his head and stared around the room. He knew things were not going to get better soon.

---------------------------

            A knock came from the Gardener's front door. Tea opened it to reveal the gang with flowers blooming in front of their faces. Tea smiled at the sympathy. She missed them a lot and it was really nice that they came over.

            "We heard what happened," Yugi said. Tea frowned at bit, but lighten up. Kikyo came up and hugged her.

            "We're so sorry," she said. Tea took her hug and smiled.

            "It's okay," Tea lied, "Really, it is." Joey stared in disbelief.

            "Well, even if you are," Joey started, "We're stealing you from your house so we could have some ice cream and a movie." Joey picked her up and then set her back down next to them. Tea laughed. She was feeling better already.

-------------------------

            "That movie was really good," Joey said, stuffing a spoonful of ice cream into his mouth. "That Honey can really move to the beat."

            "Honey was a good movie," Kikyo said, "I wish I can dance as good as her." Joey smirked.

            "I know I can…better than her may I add," Joey got up and started the chicken dance. "Bak! Bak!" Tristan grabbed Joey's shirt and brought him back down to the seat.

            "No…you can't," Tristan began, "The only thing you can probably do better than her is beating her in a pie eating contest." The group laughed. Joey smiled in victory.

            "I know," He smiled widely. Tea smiled genuinely. Her friends could cheer her up…or at least almost. She sighed, but forced a smile. Yami turned to Tea and smiled.

            "Tea could probably beat her," he said, "You know, with all your ballet dances and stuff." Bakura nodded silently.

            "How's your ballet practices going anyways," Bakura asked in curiosity. Tea looked up from her ice cream and gulped immediately.

            "It's going good," she nodded. Joey raised his eyebrow.

            "Isn't there an audition going on…you know, for all those high rank people," he asked. Tea frowned.

            "I don't think I will go," she said. Kikyo held her hand.

            "I've seen you dance before Tea and I think you should try out," she said in encouragement. The gang smiled.

            "We're all behind you 100%," Tristan said. "Right?" He looked around the group and smiled.

            "You bet your ice cream dipped in chocolate fudge we are!" Joey yelled, holding his spoon up like it was sacred. Tea smiled at the group. 

            "Okay then."

---------------------------

            From across the street, a man stood watching the young brown-haired girl talking with her friends. His silky brown highlighted hair ruffled through the breeze, a few strands in front of his face. He walked to the corner, wearing black pants and a leather jacket. He seemed to be only a year older than the girl that he was watching. He was slightly built, though skinny. The boy had an innocent face, showing brown eyes that shimmered. A few girls noticed him and gave him a wink. He blushed madly and smiled back, making one of them jump by his cuteness. Once they were gone, he rubbed his hands together to gather heat. Suddenly a ring came up. The guy picked it up his cell phone and held it to his ear.

            "Have you found her," the low voice whispered hoarsely. The boy stared at the girl and the group.

            "Yea…I did," he whispered. 

            "Good," the man on the other line replied. "The faster we get to her, the faster she can get to Seto Kaiba. That old brat doesn't know what's coming his way." 

            "Yea," he replied.

            "Then you know what to do then," then other man spoke.  The boy rubbed his temples in frustration.

            "Yes, sir," he answered. He went into the back of his car and opened it. In it revealed an old woman tied in rope, struggling to get out. "I know exactly what to do with Ms. Tea Gardener's mother." He snapped his cell phone and shoved it in his pocket. He slammed the door and went to the driver's seat and drove off. 

Ichigo- soooo???!?!?!?!?! You likie? Okay, I know I didn't really describe the boy all too great, but here. If anyone saw Squal in final fantasy 8, then the boy's hair is like his. Or better yet! If you guys know Lee Minwoo in the singing group Shinhwa, then you can just picture the boy as looking like him! *drools* if you wanna see a picture of him so you can just picture him during the story to better imagine it, just email me. In my opinion, he's hot!

Kaiba- arg! You think everyone is! 

Ichigo- *looks up and down at him* oh really, I see one that I don't think is hot and I'm staring at him right now!

Kaiba- you know you think I'm hot…

Ichigo-…….^_^ yea I know!

Bakura- *shakes head* lee minwoo is ugly…but hey1 if you guys wanna see him, go ahead! 

Ichigo- *sings* someone's jealous…

Bakura- -_- please review…


	4. Grief

Ichigo- HAPPY NEW YEAR'S EVE!  Oh! I'm so happy!

Kaiba- it's probably because you saw the Lord Of The Rings 3

Ichigo- -_- I'm not happy because I saw it…I'm happy because I saw Legolas in it! ^_^ *drools*

Bakura- Thanks for the reviews guys! * hands each reviewer a dagger-shaped cookie* 

Ichigo- I want Christmas presents! I want Christmas presents!

Kaiba-   it's already past Christmas you moron! You always want Chistmas presents! Even if it's Easter!

Bakura- Because Easter is cool! And cool is kinda like cold! And cold reminds you of-

Ichigo- Christmas!

Kaiba- What are you guys? Were you guys dropped on your heads!

Ichigo- *mad* yes! I was! And just so you know! The doctors found nothing inside! They said it was hollow!

Bakura- well that explains why she's so…weird…

Ichigo- I know! ^_^

Kaiba- well…my new year's resolution is to get something that will keep Ichigo away from me

Bakura- my new year's resolution is to control all of middle earth and help The Lord Of The Ring devour all the hobbits!

Ichigo- and my new year's resolution is to fly like peter pan and help save middle earth with the help of Legolas and little pink bunnies!

Kaiba- *shakes head* on with the story….

Drifting Away- Grief 

Tea pressed the rose against her cheeks she stared at the coffin in front of her. She wore a black dress that came down to her knees and a long black coat over it. Her hair was tied neatly into a bun, having strands of hair fall down intentionally. She wanted to look her best. She drained out all the noises that came from the guests and her family, who were talking about the sad death of her father. She didn't want to hear them, or see them, or talk to them. She just wanted to be left alone for a while before the funeral started. 

Tea held her stomach. Seeing her father pale and fragile made her stomach turn and twist into knots.  He had known her father as a strong man who could lift a ton or two without a sweat and seeing him laying down there, helpless and weak, made her want to look away. Instead, she looked down, slightly touching the edge of the coffin with the tips of her fingers.

A shoulder suddenly laid upon her shoulder. Tea turned around to face Kaiba giving a look of sympathy. He moved a strand of hair from her face and placed it behind her ear as he smiled warmly at her. She smiled back softly and turned to face her father again. Kaiba went behind her, wrapping his arms around her wais as she laid her head on his chest, holding his arms.

"Was this how you felt," Tea said softly, eyeing the coffin in front of her.

"Felt like what?" Kaiba asked her, rocking her gently from side to side. Tea dropped her head carelessly, letting it lay against his chest

"I don't know," she said helplessly, "Weird. Did you feel weird when you parents, well, past away." Kaiba shrugged.

"I guess," he said, "I was 8…or 5. To be honest, I really didn't know how I felt. I was…naïve." Tea smiled faintly.

"You not naïve," she reassured, rubbing his arms for comfort.

"I was though, you don't know how many things I regret doing." Kaiba tensed up and cleared his throat to hide his uneasiness. 

"Why won't you tell me then," Tea teased, "Maybe it'll cheer me up a bit." Kaiba fretted with his hands and gazed around the place. 

"I don't it would," he said softly.

"Come on," Tea said. Kaiba bit his lips, searching for a regret that wouldn't upset Tea even more.

"Um okay," Kaiba hesitated, "I regret…trying to get Gazaburo to adopt me and Mokuba."

"But then you wouldn't have met me," she said smiling, "So that doesn't count. Tell me another one." What did he do to you anyways?" Kaiba cleared his throat.

            "Let's leave that to another day," he whispered, chuckling slightly.

            "Okay, then another regret." Tea said. Kaiba's smile faded.

            "That's for another day also." He tightened his grip around Tea she smiled warmly.

            "Okay, but Kaiba," she started.

            "Yeah?"

            "If you hold me any tighter, I'm going to suffocate." Kaiba suddenly let go of his grasp and blushed madly. Tea sighed, turning around to see him.

            "I could always tell you stuff, you know that right?" Tea whispered softly. Kaiba rested his chin on top of Tea's head and held her again. Tea stared at the lifeless body.

            "I do now," Kaiba replied back.

            "I can tell you things that I can't even tell Joey, Tristan, Bakura, or even Yugi and Kikyo." She hated to admit it, but it was true though. They wouldn't understand. She wished they could but they had no prior experience.

            "Why is that," Kaiba said.

            "Because you were actually…normal." Tea said. She turned around slowly, and looked into his blue, shimmering eyes. He gazed back at her.

            "That's funny. I always that I was the outsider." Tea shook her head quickly.

            "You were the outsider because you were realistic and every one else wasn't. Even me." She looked at the other students who came to the funeral to support her. They were off talking to each other in all kinds of places. "Before I met you, I was going through life like it was a dream. That no matter what happened, my friendship, my hope, my courage or whatever it was. I don't care. I just went through life thinking that no matter what happened, I could handle it. I could be strong. Be strong for my friends. Be strong for my family." Her lips trembled and her voice rose. "That I can…deal with any thing." Her eyes glistened, tears slowly forming. She clenched her hands into a fist. Her voice softened. "And now I'm here, and everything is messed up and it's not a dream anymore. It's a nightmare." Kaiba tried to calm her down. He kissed her forehead and looked at her.

            "It just takes time," he said.

            "I don't even know where my mom is," Tea said again.

            "It just takes time," he said again. "Everything takes it's own course." Tea buried her head in his chest. She wasn't crying though. She was trying to hold it back. Tea just wanted Kaiba to hold her and comfort her. "It just takes time."

            "But when will it stop."

---------------------------------------------

            The funeral was just beginning and the guest finally sat down. One by one, people stood up and walked to the podium to testify. Some broke down crying, some quickly said their words and walked away before they even started. Tea walked up to the podium next. She took a deep breathe.

            "He was born June 6th, 1957 in a small town. He worked his way up to respect and dignity," Tea kept a straight face, unlike those who sat in front of her with bundles of tissue at their side. "He was my dad. And he was well-loved by many. Especially my mom. It really is ironic to see such a strong and persevering spirit lay in this coffin, pale and fragile. I will miss him most of all. And hope to God that my mom is safe."

 She stepped down, not a single tear pouring from her eyes. Her eyes remained dry and shrill throughout the whole funeral. As they lowered the coffin down into the ground, Tea stared to the sky and breathed in deeply, smelling the sweet aroma of flowers and feeling the calm surroundings that took place.

For an instant there, she was back in her dream. She was back in her dream where nothing could go wrong and everything was all right. She heard a child bawling and she suddenly snapped back to reality. The sun was setting, mixing colors together in the sky. Around her, men and women grieved and waited in line to throw flowers down to the ground where the coffin laid. 

Tea stood in line, biting her lip and looked to the side. It was her turn to throw her rose. She pressed the rose to her cheek, feeling the soft petals. She closed her eyes, and then threw the rose, watching it as it dropped to the center of the wooden carriage.

15 after, families and friends went into their car to go home. Tea stood eyeing her father's tombstone. "A Father and Friend. Loved and Cherished By All " It said, engraved. The breeze came in, making Tea's hair fly to the left as she wrapped her arms around herself, eyeing the ground.

A hand touched Tea's shoulder and Tea turned her head. The gang stood behind her.

"We can drive you home if you want," Yami said, worriedly. Tea smiled a little and nodded her head slightly.

"It's okay," she said, "You guys can go." They all nodded and started for the car.

--------------------------------------------------

            Kaiba stood in front of a grave, holding a single white rose in his hand. 

"So, this is what people do at graves, huh," he muttered to himself, "Talking to rocks and grass. Well, at least I know they're not talking to themselves like crazy people." He sighed and looked around him to see if anyone was around. "It's pathetic really," he said again, "Nothing will happen." He turned to walk away, only to stop and turn his head back to the tombstone. He walked back up.

"One try won't hurt, will it," he muttered to himself. He opened his mouth only to close it and shake his head quickly, "What am I doing! This is stupid. It's not like they're going to reply back to me. Then again, an angel did come to me when I was going suicidal." He raised an eyebrow and what he just said, "It still sounds weird when I say that." He turned again, but still went back. 

"One shot," he said whispered, "Nothing to lose, but probably my sanity." He kneeled on one knee with his arm holding the rose, laying restlessly on it.

"So," Kaiba said, "It's been a long time since I've talked to you, mom and dad." He cleared his voice. "Things been going…okay. I was suicidal, Mokuba's in a coma, and Tea's dad died and we don't even know where her mom is." Kaiba chuckled and sighed. "I have done so many things in my past and come to think of it, most of my decisions turned out horrible. You don't know how many things I regret doing, mom and dad. I just wish you were…here. You don't know how much I need you right now." Kaiba closed his eyes slowly and opened them again. He placed the white rose in front of the tombstone. Kaiba took one more glance at the grave and walked away.

-------------------------------------------------

            Tea was now sitting again the tree that was beside the grave.

"Hey," a voice came from behind. Tea turned around to see Kaiba, hands in his pockets, walking shyly towards her. Tea smiled.

"Hey," she said. "Thanks for paying for the funeral." Kaiba shrugged.

"Don't worry about it," Kaiba reassured, "Won't hurt me to spend a couple 100's to spend for you." Tea smiled.

"It really meant something for me that you made the funeral really nice," Tea remarked." Kaiba walked up to sit beside her and wrapped his arms around her.

"It's getting dark, don't you think," Kaiba asked, "Do you want to go now?" Tea shook her head.

"I want to stay a little more longer," she said, almost to herself. Kaiba nodded and said nothing more as Tea laid her head upon his shoulder, snuggling close to him. They looked at the stars together in the clear night sky.

------------------------------------------------

            Kaiba stopped at Tea's house that night. He turned his head toward her.

            "Here's your stop," Kaiba said, looking down. Tea smiled.

            "Thanks," Tea got out of the car and walked up to her door to open it. She got inside and waved good-bye to Kaiba. He drove off as Tea stepped in her house. 

            Watching from a distance, Tea peered behind the corner to see if Kaiba was gone. Satisfied at what she saw, she got out of the house and locked the door. Tea wrapped her arms around her self, trying to warm herself. 

            The wind was strong that night. Her hair swayed to the as she walked in the center of Domino City. Just to her luck, it started to rain. For some odd reason though, she continued walking. A few people were seen, just getting out of shops.

            Tea turned her head back, still walking and then turned it back, only to bump into a stranger, holding a bag of stuff in his hands, walking the opposite way. Tea dropped down to her knees in attempt to pick the bag and it's belongings. Tea frowned.

            "I'm so sorry," Tea began, "I wasn't looking." She continued picking the things up, unaware of the person helping her.

            "No it's okay," a voice replied, "I should know where I was going." Tea handed him a toy car, they hands touching gently in the rain. 

Tea glanced up suddenly to see a young boy, not much older than her, looking up at the same time. His brown hair, wet from the water droplets pouring down, came down to his ears, partly covering the sides of his eyes. His hair reminded her of Seto Kaiba's hair, only this boy's had a more darker shade of brown and his hair was highlighted with streaks of lighter brown colors. He was wearing a blue old navy shirt and what seemed to be denim jeans. His features were extraordinary. His skin was flawless and his eyes glistened in the moonlight. Tea suddenly smiled and looked away. He smiled shyly and slowly stood up with his umbrella in hand. Tea also stood up and faced him.

"I guess I should say thank-you," he said, looking down as he dug his hands into his pockets. "So, thank-you," Tea smiled all of a sudden, although she tried to hide it by looking down.

"No, it was my fault," she replied back. She glanced down at the floor and realized that there was one more item on the floor. She picked it up and looked at it.

"A duel-disk," Tea said to herself, "KaibaCorp's creation, right?" She asked him.

He nodded eagerly, smiling wider.

            "For my older brother," he said, "He loves dueling." Tea nodded. They stood there in silence for a while. The boy looked around and took a hand out.

            "Donichi Kuwaba," he stated, " But you can call me Don Don for short." Tea smiled sweetly and cocked her head. She shook his hand.

            "Tea Gardener," she replied back. He nodded and smiled, his eyes shimmering on his innocent caring face.

            "Nice to meet you, Tea" he said, gazing at her. Tea blushed slightly. She knew he was a stranger and she just met him, but the warmth of his hand touching hers, his starry eyes gazing at hers, his smile making her heart beat faster. 

            She then remembered of Seto Kaiba and the night at the garden. His hand touching hers as he handed her the rose, warm and loving. His kiss that night, so gentle as if to make sure she felt like she was the only girl in the world. Tea shook the thought of that mysterious stranger, smiling at her as thought of Seto, holding her tightly as they danced.

            Tea let go of her hand and kept it behind her back as she moved away. The boy gave a curious look as to why she backed away, but then just smiled and dug his hand into his pocket again.

            "I guess I should be going," he decided. He chuckled uncomfortably and then looked at the soaking girl in front of him. He handed her his umbrella. Tea looked at it and opened her mouth to protest.

            "It's okay, take it," he reassured, shrugging at the same. Tea raised an eyebrow and smirked.

            "Do you always give an umbrella to strangers," she replied. 

            "I have a feeling we'll be meeting more of each other in the future," he smiled. He turned around to leave. "Good-night, Ms. Garderner." Tea watched him walk away and sighed.

            " Good-bye."

---------------------------------------------

            Ring. Ring. Tea picked up her cell phone, placing it beside her ear.

            "Yo," a new-Yorker voice replied. Tea smiled.

            "Hey Joey," she said, jumping onto her bed. She just gotten herself changed from the harsh weather outside. "Wus up?"

            "New Year's Eve is comin," Joey grinned wildly. He sat in front of his tv, sitting  Indian style. Bags of chips and dip surrounded the teenager.  "Tristan is havin a party at house and word has it, he invited a lot'o people, n' one of the many people who we want to invite is you and money-bags."  Te sighed and rolled her eyes.

            "Money-bags, huh?" Tea laughed, "Is that his nickname now?" 

            "Whadadya think I'm gonna call him," Joey wailed, waving his arms around, "Supreme Lord of us all?" Ta laughed and went to her closet to find an outfit.

            "I thought you guys were cool now," Tea asked. Joey shrugged.

            "Yea, we are," he said. "But now I can call him whateva I want and not get beat up for it!" Tea smiled.

            "Okay, count me in." Tea spoke. Joey nodded.

            "Already did."

-----------------------------------

            Kaiba sat at his desk, computing statistics on his laptop. He smiled as the ratings on his latest invention raised higher and higher and higher. Proud of his accomplishment, he rested his hands behind his head and sighed. _Nothing says winner better than Seto Kaiba himself. _He watched again, as the numbers went from thousands, to millions, and then to billions.

            The speaker went aloud a dew minutes after and Kaiba went out of his chair to press the button.

            "Yes, Rachel," Kaiba asked, strict and cold as usual.

            "There's another virus in sector 12 and it seems to be spreading to other computers in sectors 1-10." Her voice was steady and unnerving. Kaiba sighed, running his hand through his shaggy hair. There were so many times when he had to deal with these senseless things and it made him dumb-founded as to why these pathetic morons of his couldn't deal with it themselves. It made no sense at all to hire them just so that they'll do nothing and still get paid high. It just had about enough it.

            "I don't pay you guys to just sit there and look like pretty little idiots," Kaiba scolded, "I paid you to run this company right. If you so-called workers can't deal with a simple virus, then maybe it's time that you and the other morons in this place find another job." He narrowed his eyes.

            "You can't possibly fire me," Rachel said, determined, "I'm the best you have in this place and you can't argue with that. Not only am I your secretary, but I'm also the person you put in charge in the making of you inventions, Mr. Kaiba. I'm their manager."

            "Then started acting like one," he sneered back. He paced around the dimmed room with the curtains covering the window. "Tell your people to fix this mess up themselves and if they do it wrong, they'll have to answer to me." He pushed the button again and went to sit back down.

            He waited 2 hours for a report of the mishap and still nothing came. He grew weary and agitated and rubbed his hands on his face. This would have take n him 30 minutes to the max. He stood up and pressed the button.

            "Rachel," Kaiba said through the speaker, "I've been waiting and waiting and still you donkeys haven't told me what happened." He waited for a reply back, but was shot by silence. "Rachel," Kaiba demanded, "Give me a report or you'll be seeing yourself on the road in a matter of minutes." 

            "The virus is already in sectors 1-12 and is already spreading to all the sectors in the building. The virus will be done infusing it self in a matter of hours. And it seems to be affecting out profits out of the inventions." Kaiba muttered to himself and growled.

            "Tell them to stop and let me do it," Kaiba groaned, "It seems that's always the situation in this company." Kaiba walked down the KaibaCorp's main building and started to work. Kaiba examined it and did a little guess and check here and there. He found out the problem and smiled. _Someone's hacking into our mainframe and trying to steal our money through the computer. Stupid morons._ After about 45 minutes, he was done and got up to go. He walked up to the doors and closed the light. He was about to go when the computer screen of the same computer he worked on started blinking. Kaiba turned around and strolled back to his seat in front of the computer. 

            He watched it blink and found that the virus was still going on. He placed a confused look on his face.

            "What?" he groaned, "I've been fixing these hackings for years, what's wrong with this one?" He continued working on it.

            1 hours past, and then another hour, and then another hour and still Kaiba couldn't fix it. _ What is wrong with this thing? His hand trembled and he fretted more and more. All of a sudden, the hacking stopped, but not because of Kaiba._

            "They stopped…hacking," he whispered. Everything went back to normal. He hurried back to his office to see what the statistics of the profits were. He opened his laptop and scanned through it. The ratings and the statistics decreased dramatically. Kaiba knew right then that whoever hacked into KaibaCorp also took out more than ½ of its money too. A sweat drop formed beneath his eyebrow as he buried his face into his hands in disappointment.

----------------------------------------------- 

            Tea walked inside her bathroom, adjoined by her room. She began to brush her hair.  She continued combing her tangled hair until she noticed a sheet of paper, folded carefully, underneath the kiwi fragranced lotion. Tea slowly crept onto it, hesitating before opening it. She unfolded it, relieved to only find her mother's grocery list. 

            Tea smiled. Something dropped from the letter and Tea picked it up. It was her mother's plane ticket to Domino City. Pale-frightened and curious, Tea wondered how her plane could have been here. After all, Tea did make sure her parents had both of their tickets. Tea, wide-eyed, looked at the paper again. 

            There was still writing on the back.

"Ever wondered if your house is always safe. Let us tell you…it's not."

            Tea dropped the letter and dashed out of her bedroom, running toward the front door. All of a sudden, the phone rang. A cold shrill came down her spine and she slowly turned her head and stared at the phone. Tea gulped and picked it up.

            "Hello?" she said, her lips quivering.

            "Hello, Ms. Gardener," the menacing voice spoke, "Having a fun time?" Tea's body shivered as she sat down on the arm of the couch.

            "W-who is this?" she demanded. She tried to sound tough, but her voice was soft.

The guy on the other side chuckled.

            "So quick to questions," he taunted. He spoke lowly, "Don't worry about who we are, just about now," he growled, "Worry about your mother and what we're about to do to her if you don't get us what we want." Tea's heart beat was as fast as a racing horse as she panted in and out.

            "Where is she? Please, just tell me," she pleaded, "Tell me what you want and I'll get it for you."

            "Patience, dear child," the voice said calmly, "Patience." Tea bit her bottom lip, anxiously waiting for an answer. "You must give us up to 3 million dollars in cash." Tea's eyes widen at the sum of the money.

            "I-I don't have that much money with me," she stuttered. The tears welled up again, only to be wiped away by her hands. "I don't have that much money."

            "I really don't care if you don't have that much money with you," he scolded, "I don't care if you rot. If you don't give us that money within 5 months, I'll see to it that you'll be reunited with your mother, only to see her die."

            "No," she pleaded. She dropped to the floor, her right hand clutching her t-shirt. "Please."  The dial tone was all that was heard as Tea gripped the phone to her ear.

Ichigo- well! Hope you guys liked our new year's eve treat! ^_^

Bakura- please review!

Kaiba- *eating* hey! These dagger-shaped cookies are good!

Ichigo, Kaiba, and Bakura- HAPPY NEW YEAR'S EVE TO ALL!

Ichigo- AND AL A FREAKIN GOOD NIGHT TOO!


	5. A New Year To Remember

Ichigo- Sorry for the extremely long delay. Somebody *glares and Bakura* deleted the whole chapter and lost the disk saved onto it.

Bakura- it wasn't my fault you wouldn't give me back my ice cream!

Ichigo- I told you once and I'll tell you again! You took that ice cream from the girl on the street and ran away!

Bakura- and it took some effort!

Kaiba- *sigh* see what I have to put up with? 

Ichigo- T.T and that was the best chippie I have written so far!

Bakura- T.T I'm sorry… do…you want some cookies then?

Ichigo- ^_^ thanks…where did you get them! These are good!

Bakura- no kidding! The little girl said she got them from Kroger!

Ichigo- aww! That's so sweet! Did you say thank-you?

Bakura- O.o why should I? I took the ice cream as well as the cookies with me!

Ichigo- -_- anyways..some of you are asking what happened to mokuba! If you read chapter 17 in Melting A Heart of blah blah blah, then yea, you would know. But since I'm nice and don't steal ice cream *glares at Bakura* I wrote it the situation out again…or atleast I did. Now I'm just too lazy and just copied and pasted some parts from chapter 17. 

Kaiba- long story short…just read and you'll find out…plus…I think you should read this part b/c it MIGHT have something to do with the ending! Ooooooo If you guys already now what happened, then just scroll down after the scene where it says "Present" to see what happens next.

Ichigo- and for a VALENTINES TREAT, we added some frosting to this little chapter that will hopefully make you smile! So HAPPY B-LATED VALENTINES TO ALL! And please review!

Drifting Away- A New Year To Remember

_"The sky is high. It is far away, just like your heart. Only tears are by my side, I cant forget you"___

"Call 911," Kaiba quivered. He pulled back Mokuba's hair and started rocking back and forth with Mokuba in his arms. "Wake up Mokuba. Come on I know you can." Mokuba just lay there unconscious. Tea still stood there, watching everything. "Tea!"

Tea snapped back again and looked at Kaiba. "Go now!" Tea ran inside the house calling 911."

After calling, Tea ran outside where Kaiba was still kneeling with Mokuba in his arms.

"This can't be happening," Kaiba said repeatedly. "This can't be happening."

"Wha-what happened," Tea asked one of the kids who was playing with Mokuba.

"There wa-was a car and it hit Mokuba," the young boy stuttered, " He went o-over there to get the ball with his bi-bike and the car jus swerved and hit him."

"Where did the car go?" Tea said nervously. The boy stood quiet, on the verge of tears. "WHERE DID HE GO!" she shouted.

"I don't know! I just don't know," the boy screamed. "He just went by."

"Where," Kaiba asked immediately. He gently laid Mokuba back and stood up holding his open arms open. "Where did he go," Kaiba demanded. Tea stared at Kaiba's arm and stepped back from where he was as she gulped slowly, not taking her eyes off Kaiba's arms

"Kaiba," Tea said slowly, slightly quivering. She never took her eyes of his arms and hands. Kaiba didn't hear her soft voice.

"Where did the driver go," Kaiba repeated.

"Kaiba," Tea said more firmly and loudly. Kaiba jerked his head toward Tea.

"What," Kaiba said in an annoyed voice, "What is it?" Tea stepped back. She was breathing hard, still staring at his arms.

"Your arms," Tea began, "Look at your arms." Kaiba looked at her for and moment and then slowly look at his arms. Red coloring was stained to his long sleeves and his hands were covered with blood. Kaiba's eyes widen and he jerked his head to Mokuba. He ran to him and kneeled while searching. He turned Mokuba around and there he saw the menaced wood protruding out of Mokuba's left side. Kaiba's eyes widened bigger in horror and on the verge of tears while breathing faster and faster. He quickly wiped the tears that were about to come out. Suddenly, Mokuba's eyes lit open slowly. Kaiba looked up and held Mokuba's head to his chest. Mokuba was crying in pain and was staring at Kaiba.

"I-it hurts, Seto," Mokuba said weakly, his eyelids slowly closing. Kaiba was nodding fast, repeatedly, still with kept tears in his eyes.

"Yes, yes I know," Kaiba whispered, "Just hang in there, kiddo. Just hang in there. Everything will be okay." He rocked his body back and forth. "A-are you okay, do you f-feel okay?" Kaiba stuttered. Mokuba's face was stained with tears. He slowly shook his head, not a tear coming from his eyes.

"I don't think so," Mokuba said softly. Kaiba's welled up again, but as always, the tears never came out. 

"Where is the ambulance," Kaiba shouted quickly. Tea looked around worriedly, biting her lip. Kaiba gently put Mokuba back on the concrete and stood up to take out his cell phone out of his pocket. He then dialed 911.

"Hello?" Kaiba said urgently, "Where are you guys!" Kaiba's veins were popping out as his face wrinkled in worry. "I don't care if there is traffic or not, if you had a brain you would have brought another ambulance on a different path! Bring another one or I'll make sure you all will get fired for not doing your jobs," Kaiba screamed angrily, "y borhter is bleeding here and if you guys don't come down here right now, I'll see to it that you'll regret this day!" Kaiba threw his cell phone to the floor and rished to Mokuba's side. Mokuba was crying in pain, screaming.

"Make it stop, just please make it stop hurting," Mokuba cried out, "Please." Tears welled up in the younger Kaiba's eyes. Mokuba looked into Kaiba's eyes pleadingly while holding tightly to his hand. Mokuba was bruised from head to toe with deep cuts and cuts covering his body. And with one final plea for life, Mokuba whispered, "Please." A single tear dropped down his cheek. Kaiba touched his forehead with Mokuba's. Slowly, Mokuba's eyelids closed shut. Kaiba's eyes widened.

"Mokuba," kaiba asked quietly, tears welling heavily in his eyes. He stared at Mokuba, but Mokuba didn't move. Suddely, the ambulance came, but Kaiba didn't notice them. He didn't notice them taking Mokuba away from his arms. He didn't even notice the people calling out to him to come inside the ambulance. He just kneeled there in the same positin he was in when he held Mokuba as his whole world spun in circles and crash. The people had to carry him inside by the arms onto the ambulance. Everything seemed to be in slow motion. But he didn't notice.

***

"H-how is he," Kaiba asked worriedly, "Is he okay, will I be able to bring him back hiome sometime soon or possibly today," The doctor sighed and rubged his forehead continuously. He looked Kaiba straight in the eye.

"I don't think he's coming hom anytime soon, Mr. Kaiba," the docot hesistated. Kaiba's face wrinkled as his whole face turned pale with horror an anticipation.

"Wh-what do y-you mean," Kaiba's voice quivered and he stepped a foot back.

"The good thing is that your brother is not dead," the doctor reassured.

"And the bad part is," kaiba asked as he loosened his coloar.

"The bad part is," the doctor began, "Is that although we have successfully removed the wound from your brother, he has suffered a major head injury in that incident," Kaiba's heart started beating.

"And," Kaiba asked, half not wanting to know.

"And," the doctor hesitated, "He's in a coma."

"He's unconscious," Kaiba asked.

"Correct," the doctor replied, "He's has to be under our care intil he wakes up, if indeed he does."

"What do you mean by that," Kaiba said. The man he was talking to stood quietly. Kaiba took a step foreward and whispered with a slight quiver in his voice, "How long will he be like this?"

"Depends on how bad the injury is," the doctor said, "Maybe days, or months, years…possibly for the rest of his life period. We don't quite know the average time a person wakes up from a coma." The doctor looked at his papers once in a while. "You're brother will be under our best of care. We're very sorry." Then the doctor walked out the door as Kaiba slowly sat down, taking everything the doctor said in his mind.

----------------------------------

Present

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            Kaiba buried his face into his hands. All his hard work to just to keep his brother protected from any harm or danger was ruined just by one lousy problem he wasn't able to control. He couldn't look at himself anymore.

            Kaiba sat in his office, watching through the window and the sky. All of a sudden, a door bell rang. He sighed and got up and strolled down. He opened the door before Tea ran up to him, clinging onto his shirt. She wrapped her arms around his neck, trying not to fall to her knees.

            Kaiba just stood there, shock by her arrival. Slowly putting his arms around her in a comforting way, Kaiba gently talked sweet words in her ear. He then pushed her away from him.

            "Is something wrong," he asked. Tea kept herself from crying and just wrapped her arms around herself.

            "No," she lied. Kaiba looked at her curiously and held her shoulders. Tea looked to the side and discomfort. She looked at him again. "Can I stay here, for the night or…longer."  Kaiba nodded slowly.

            "Sure," he said, " I see no reason why not. Tea, is something wrong?"  Tea forced a faint smile and shook her head.

            "I just don't feel safe in my house," she answered, "Never lived in a house with no one in it."

            "Okay," Kaiba walked in the kitchen and took his keys. "Lets go get your stuff."

            "I already got it," she smiled, moving aside to see two suitcases. Kaiba raised an eyebrow for a moment, but then shook his head and smiled.

            "Should have known that you did," Kaiba chuckled. He got one and started to go upstairs until Tea ran up and got to the stairs first.

            "I got it," she said nervously. She went a few steps up the stair, but then stopped. "Hey Seto?" she asked softly.

            "Yeah?"

            "Tristan is having a party at his house. Suppose to be for New Year's. Will you come with me?" Kaiba smiled.

            "Of course."

--------------------------

            Tea sighed while lying on her bed, looking at the ceiling. She turned to the side to watch the sky through the balcony door. She never thought that her world would turn upside down so sudden. So soon. She only thought that these types of situations were only for movies and overdramatic soap operas.

            She closed her eyes, trying to imagine telling her friends about the phone call. Tea's eyebrows drooped. It would be best not to tell them. After all, what can they do anyways? They don't have that kind of money. What would she say to those sadistic people when she comes to them with no money? What would they do to her mom? What will her friends do when she tells them?

            No. She can't tell them. She can't break down and fall to her knees to show them her true self. The weak little immature girl hiding behind an image of a strong responsible well-to do young woman. What will her friends think when they see the once strong Tea fall into a deep pool of misery that she had always been in?

            Of course, she couldn't tell Kaiba. He had the money, yes. But she doubt that he would care enough to give 3 million dollars to her. How can she, a simple average girl, ask a multi-millionair for money? It was embarrassing. Just like how her parents thought of her.

            At least that was what she thought. Tea got up and took out the snow globe Kaiba gave to her Christmas Eve. She turned the knob and let go to watch the angel dance in the snow. How graceful she moved. Tea grew with envy.

            Her parents were the natural happy couple. Always optimistic, kind, and respectful to others. It always bothered her how she could never match up to them. And she knew she had disappointed them numerous times, her mother especially.

            Her mother was a professional dancer in her earlier years. Up to this day, she had been teaching Tea moves that every dancer would love to know. But even though she tried, Tea never could follow. She noticed that when she was young and could see the wrinkles in her mom's face. 

            Her dad wasn't quite like that. She didn't even think he even cared about her dancing. He would just nod his head in approval just because she was daddy's little girl. Her dad always expected Tea to become a doctor and when she decided to become a ballerina, she guessed that her dad was crushed.

            She remembered the picture at home with her and her parents after a dance recital. Sure that seemed proud of their girl in the picture, but she knew that after the recital was gone and they were back home, her mom would tell out all of her mistakes.

            But then, when she was on the break of thinking that her parents were not the natural happy couple that seemed to be, she remembered the time when she was at dance practice and glimpse at the back door.    

            There stood her parents watching happily at their daughter in pride. When Tea glimpsed at them, she expected a disappointed look. It was so refreshing to see actually go home with compliments and appreciation. And for the first in a long period, she actually saw her mom cry. 

            Tea opened the balcony doors and layered her elbows on the marbled pane.  She now agreed that too much thinking could give you a real headache. She closed her eyes slowly, feeling the moon's light on her while the breeze gently swift though. Everything was so peaceful. At least, her surroundings were calm. Inside her, it was a different world. Her head ached and her stomach hurled and twisted inside. 

            Tea was getting tired of her "strong" characteristic. Sometimes, she wished she could be the one who needed to depend on somebody. She got tired of pretending like everything was perfect and that she could take down everything that was put in front of her, even if it was the death of her father. Outside, was this powerful girl that would take a million years to break down, but inside was this small little child just wanting something, someone to take her in their arms and take care of her. 

            By then, she didn't even notice the bottle of wine she was holding in her hand. She kept on drinking. It seemed to help a little. It helped ease the pain at least. She felt a bit dizzy, but that was normal. She always felt dizzy. She stumbled down to the floor, clutching her head. Kaiba walked in with a glass of water.

            "I thought you might want some-," He stopped while staring at the drunken girl. He quickly bent down to pick her up and put her on the bed.

            "Let go of me," she said arrogantly, "I can do it myself." Kaiba grabbed the bottle from her hand and drained its contents down the sink. "Hey!" Tea yelled. The young boy dumped the bottle in the trash and came up to Tea.

            "Do you know what you're doing?" he asked irritably. Tea smiled and closed her eyes, raising a finger for a moment.

            "Yes…I do," she said happily, drunk from the wine. Kaiba shook his head furiously. The last thing he wanted was another burden to carry.

            "No you don't," he said, "You're getting yourself drunk," Tea shook her head.

            "Correction," Tea started, "I already got myself drunk, Mr. Smarty Pants." Kaiba groaned in frustration.

            "Do you have any more of this in your suitcase," he asked.

            "Nope, wait…yea…no, wait," Tea giggled, "I don't know." Kaiba rolled his eyes and began unpacking her stuff. He found 2 more bottles. Tea held her stomach as her face turned pale. She ran to the restroom before she threw up. After she was down, she clenched her head.

            "My head hurts," she complained. Kaiba drained the contents and then turned around to see her.

            "It wouldn't if you haven't been drinking so much," he scowled. Tea shoved him while walking past him.

            "Why do you care so much," she snarled, "It isn't like you're the one throwing up." Tea walked to her bed and sat down, face in her hands.

            "What's happening to you," Kaiba asked. "It's like you're not even Tea." Tea groaned.

            "You know what, I just don't want to do this now," Tea said. 

            "Well, that too bad," Kaiba said firmly, "You don't even want to talk about anything anymore." He paced around.

            "What are you? My mom?" Tea screamed. "You're not my mom, so quit acting like the responsible one." Kaiba stopped pacing around, his face in frustration.

            "Someone has to be, since you're obviously not."

            "You're not that responsible either," Tea scowled, "If you really were, mokuba wouldn't be in the hospital and you wouldn't have been cutting yourself so much back then." Kaiba looked at her hurtful, not believing what she had just said to him. Tea sighed and closed her eyes, realizing what she just said. "Look, I didn't mean-," Kaiba headed out the door.

            "I think you did mean that," Kaiba said. He stopped at the door and said lowly, "I don't think I'm up for that party at Tristan's anymore." He walked out the door. Tea looked down, disgusted at what she just did. 

----------------

            Tea walked out of Kaiba's house the following night for Tristan's party in a black skirt with a chain wrapped around her waist as a belt and a white tank top. Kaiba was in his office working on some stocks. Seeing him being frustrated made twists in Tea's stomach.

She got in her car that was back from the shop and went to his party.

            Tristan's house was huge and when Tea got there, there were already a lot of cars parked. Tea opened the door and was greeted by Tristan and Joey with party hats on. Everyone was dressed nicely with the girl wearing skirts and the boys wearing suits. Tea smiled.

            "Happy New Year's Tea," Tristan yelled over the music. 

            "You too," she smiled, hugging both of them. Joey raised an eyebrow.

            "Where's Kaiba?" Joey asked. Tea forced another smile to appear.

            "Umm…he has some work to do." She said as normally as she could. Joey nodded, not quite sure. 

"Okay, well let me show you somebody we met at the shop," Joey said cheerfully. "Yo, Don Don! Get your hands off that cake 'cuz I gotta show you someone." Tea realized that name and now wondered if it was that boy she met in Domino City. To her surprise, it was the same person. Tea immediately smiled as the boy walked in with black pants and jacket with a blue shirt under. He smiled shyly and handed out his hand.

"Hey Tea," he smiled, "I guess I was right when I said we'll be seeing more of each other." Tea laughed.

"Yeah," she said, completely amazed. Joey and Tristan stared dumbly.

"You know him?" Tristan asked. "What a small world we have."

"Don Don is the son of that company…umm what is it? Kirkhigh Inc. I think," Joey said.

"Yeah," don don said cheerfully, "I try to keep it low key, but I guess that didn't work well." Everyone laughed.

"Where's Yami and Kikyo?" Tea asked? The three boys pointed at the couple who were dancing from closely, kissing each other every time they had the chance to.

"They're getting it on," Joey joked. 

"Well me and Joe here have to go," Tristan said, waving good-bye. Tea smiled and waved back, leaving her with Don Don. They stood there for a while in silence. Don Don looked up at her.

"Um, do you want a drink," Don Don said, "Or some cake or something?" Tea shook her head.

"It's okay." She said uncomfortably.

"Are you sure," Don Don began to smile, "One of the drinks there is bubble tea. With the little balls in them and stuff."

"You mean tapioca," Tea smiled.

"Tapioca?" Tea laughed.

"The little balls are called tapioca," Tea said. Don Don blushed that he didn't even know that.

"Oh," Don Don chuckled. "Well, do you want some?"

"Sure, why not," Tea said cheerfully. She followed him to the table as he began to pour some into a cup. He handed it to her before she began drinking. "Thanks."

            "You're welcomed," Don Don said. "So what's a girl like you coming here all alone?" Tea smiled and smiled mischievously.

            "You're a smooth talker aren't you," Tea smiled. Don Don looked down and laughed.

            "You think I'm smooth? I usually trip over my words," He chuckled. Tea smiled.

            "Well, if you must know," Tea began, "I was suppose to come here with Seto Kaiba, but we had a little fight." Don Don nodded.

            "That happened to me one time," Don Don said, "I was going out with this girl Amanda and before we were going, she asked me if how she looked in this dress. Now this dress was black, with pink and green poke-a-dots. Very hideous. I may sound like a rich snob right now, but if you would have seen that dress you wouldn't blame me." Tea smiled genuinely for the first time that day.

            "What did you say?" Tea said, completely amused by the situation.

            "Well I tried not to be rude," he started, "I said that maybe she could get another dress. But she just got really mad and assumed that I thought she looked fat in it." Tea laughed, her eyes dancing.

            "And she broke it off," she asked. Don Don smiled and shook his head in embarrassment.

            "No, she just picked another dress," Don Don chuckled, "I swear she had the worst sense of style ever. She then picked this really bright yellow dress that had brown and black stuff on it. I don't even know what it was. She asked me if this was better and I thought it would just be better if I said yes. So she was happy."

            "Then why did she not come with you to the party," Tea asked. She took a sip of her bubble tea and kept her eyes on Don Don.

            "Well I didn't know she was going to wear it right after we got out of the mall," he exclaimed. Tea's jaw dropped down in disbelief as her eyes shimmered. "People kept on staring at her and got mad at me for not telling her. So I was like "Okay I don't think that dress looks good. And then she got and mad again and blamed me for calling her ugly even though I said not such thing." Tea shook her head.

            "Just to give you advise," Tea said, "Just avoid any questions a girl asks about her looks." Don Don nodded and smiled.

            "I found that out a long time ago," he laughed. Tea smiled and looked at the door. She sighed heavily and looked down. Don Donn lowered his head to meet hers. "Still upset?"

            "I was just hoping he would come through that door or something." Tea said sadly. Don Don refilled his glass and raised it up.

            "Let's toast to couples who don't know what the heck is going on, eh?" Don Don smiled to the side. "And to horrifying clothes." Tea smiled and raised her cup.

            "To couples and clothes." She said proudly.

            "To couples and clothes," he said after her, before drinking. 

-----------------------

            Kikyo watched the two brunets raising their cups to one another while clinging on to Yami. She bit her lip and raised her eyebrow, wondering what happened to Tea and Kaiba. She watched as the boy she heard as Donichi Kuwaba, the son of one of the biggest companies out there.  She snorted in disappointmen under her breath. Don Don was almost exactly like Seto Kaiba. Only Don Don seemed too much more friendlier and social. 

The first time she ever noticed him was when a group of girls almost ran her over to try and get to him. Kikyo smiled slightly. She saw his face when those girls crowded around him. She knew he didn't like all the attention as he tried to move away from him. He was a nice boy. Most guys would just put his arms around those girls and bring them to some room. But Don Don seemed more shy then some guys as he smiled politely at them and walked away from them quickly. She laughed quietly to herself when she saw the situation. _Poor guy. _She thought, smiling. Her smile soon faded as she watched Tea and Don Don talking.

Yami looked at her curiously. He smirked.

"Don't tell me you're falling for that new guy too?" Yami smiled. Kikyo jerked her head toward Yami and smiled, before kissing him on the lips.

"Are you jealous," she teased. Yami wrapped his arms around her waist.

"Of course not," Yami said uneasily. "You're not falling for him, right?" Kikyo laughed at Yami's fear. It was so cute.

"No," she smiled. "I'm just curious. Maybe Tea's falling for him." Yami smiled.

"No way," Yami exclaimed, laughing, "Tea is Kaiba's. Or…she's supposed to be. I mean, she rejected me just to be with him. And who can resist this sexy face here?" Yami joked. Kikyo laughed.

"Wow, so you're Mr. Sexy now," Kikyo teased. Yami raised his head proudly.

"What do you mean "now"?" Yami started, "I've always been Mr. Sexy." Kikyo kissed him on the lips.

"I love your humor," she said, "But I'm afraid that I will have to leave Mr. Sexy all alone to talk to Miss Bubble Tea Girl over there." Yami clenched his heart and pretended like he was hurt.

"Ouch," Yami said, "You've rejected me. It's so ironic how I'm Mr. Sexy and still girls can dump me." Kikyo laughed and walked up to the two brunettes talking.

"Hey guys," Kikyo said cheerfully. Tea and Don Don smiled.

"Hey Kikyo," Tea said, "You and Yami were looking hot down there dancing and stuff. Though I can't say that were always dancing out there, if you know what I mean." Tea smirked while Kikyo blushed beat red.

"Yea well," Kikyo started, "Mr. Sexy down over there needed some cooling off. I just wanted to talk to you for a bit, if it's okay with Mr. Don Don here." Don Don smiled.

"Go ahead," He smiled. Kikyo locked arms with Tea and brought her outside to the pool where other people there were roaming around. The stars and moon showed brightly as the lights from the pool reflected lightly around. Tea smiled at Kikyo.

"So what's up," Tea asked. Kikyo looked down and then right back up to meet Tea's face.

"Did you and Kaiba have a fight again," Kikyo asked. Tea frowned and fumbled with her hands, looking back at the door. "I'm just worried that's all."

"It was my fault," she said guiltily, "I shouldn't have blamed him for Mokuba and other stuff. Sorry that I got you so worked up about it." Kikyo gave her a gentle hug.

"It's okay," she comforted, "It's just that you seemed to have such a great time with Don Don. I just wondered if you guys were flirting or something." Tea stared in disbelief and laughed.

"We're just friends Kikyo," Tea said, "I'm still hoping that Kaiba will come here. Kikyo nodded.

"Well he better come here before you'll be kissing somebody either then him," Kikyo warned. Tea raised an eyebrow.

"What do you mean?" Tea asked. Kikyo cocked her head to the right.

"You didn't know that when the clock strikes 12, you're suppose to kiss someone?" Kikyo asked.

"No," Tea said. She groaned. "Great, I'm a dateless girl at a party full of couples." Kikyo smirked.

"Not everyone's a couple," she said. She looked at Don Don through the glass doors who was just standing around. Tea backed away from her and smiled.

"Oh no, do not tell me that-," Kikyo's eyes widened.

"No!" Kikyo exclaimed, laughing, "Heck no. I'm just stating a fact. Lynn over there is dateless and so is that guy over there and that those group of guys over there playing volleyball with those girls who don't have a date either. The guys just came here probably for the booze and beer. Although, you'll be the only dateless person is our gang." Tea laughed.

"How about Joey and Tristan," Tea asked.

"Joey convinced Mai to go with him and Tristan finally got Serenity to go too…although is wasn't easy when you have Joey threatening Tristan he'll beat him up if he doesn't treat her right." Tea giggled.

"Well thanks for cheering me up," Tea said sarcastically. Kikyo smiled victoriously.

"No problem," Kikyo said. Just then Yami went out and took Kikyo's hand.

"Hate to steal Kikyo away from ya, Tea," Yami smiled, "But Mr. Sexy doesn't look so hot standing all alone in there." Kikyo laughed and waved good-bye to Tea. Tea smiled back and came back inside to talk with Don Don.

--------------------------------

            Joey talked with a group of guys over there in the living room. Tea and Don Don distracted them. They've been talking with each other the whole night. Joey got up.

            It's ironic. His whole life he was certain her wouldn't help Seto Kaiba in any way, but now it seemed that Joey would help him in any situation possible. Joey concluded that he was part of the gang. Even though he was still kind of anti-social, Kaiba didn't have that cold look in his eyes whenever he saw them.

            Joey went up to the phone and dialed a phone number.

            "Hello," a harsh voice answered.

            "Yo Kaiba," Joey said cheerfully, "What's up?" 

            "Joey?" the voice lightened up, "Why are you calling me? Do you need money?" There was humor in his voice. Joey smiled.

            "HaHa, funny," Joey said sarcastically, "I just wanted ta know if you'll be coming to da party any time soon." There was a pause.

            "No," was the simple reply. Joey frowned.

            "Why?" 

            "Me and Tea had a fight yesterday," Kaiba admitted. "I just feel up to it."

 Joey frowned a bit. _Tea said he had work. _Tea never lied to him, which was probably the reason why he was shocked.

            "Well," Joey said, "Ya might wanna feel up to it."

            "Why is that?"

            "Because who's gonna be there for Tea when dat clock strikes 12," Joey asked. Kaiba raised an eyebrow.

            "What's going happen at 12," Joey's jaw dropped.

            "Don't tell me dat you haven't heard dat when the clock strikes 12, everyone has to kiss someone." Kaiba shook his head.

            "I don't believe in that." Joey shrugged.

            "Ya don't havta believe it," Joey started, "It depends on what Tea believes. 'Cuz there's this nice looking new boy in town and hate to tell ya, but the girls are fallin for him. And Tea and Don Don seems to be hittin it off." Kaiba tensed up, worrying a little bit.

            "And that is suppose to bother me," Kaiba asked. Joey sighed.

            "Well let me give ya a 'lil scenario here," Joey began, "it's 10 seconds before the 12 strikes. Everyone is counting the seconds down to one and partnering up. 8 seconds left and Tea is getting nervous. 6 seconds, what will she do. The noise is just overwhelming as her heart beats." Kaiba began to look around, becoming nervous. Joey's voice started again, "4 seconds left and everything is get heated up and Tea doesn't know what to do. 2 seconds left. 1 second…what will Tea do?" Joey gestured with his hands.

            "I'll be down there." Kaiba said in an instant.

            "You better hurry," Joey urged, "It's 11:47." He was then replied with a dial tone.

--------------------------

            Kaiba hurried down the stairs with his keys as his heart beated crazily. He didn't want to be too late. He got into his car and drove off.

            It was 11:51. Tea looked at the door, hoping to see Kaiba run up to her. She stared at it. All of a sudden the door busted open and Tea began to smile only to find that it was just a group of guys carrying a keg. 

            Kaiba waited on the road filled with other cars. He listened to the radio to drain out his thoughts, only…it didn't work, Kaiba groaned at the slow pace the cars were going. How was he supposed to know there was traffic? He looked at the clock on his car, which showed 11:55. Kaiba fumbled with his hands and shut his eyes. He was so stupid. 

            Tea looked down and then at the door. Everyone was gathering up now. She looked at Don Don and smiled at him. They both walked in with the other group of people who were watching the clock and the television. It was 11:57. Tea bit her lip, looking back at the door. Her eyes sulked down when no one came in.

            11:59 came and Kaiba raced down the road to Tristan's house. Time passed by till it was 20 seconds left. He heard the people counting down the numbers til New Years, which made him more anxious. 15 seconds was left and Kaiba gulped.

            10 seconds was left and Tea turned to face Don Don. Her heart beated and she forced a smile on her face. She drew closer to him. She soon joined the group in counting down. She looked at the door again as she counted 9 with them.

            8 seconds left, Kaiba parked his car 4 houses down from Tristan's. Kaiba shook his head. He'll never make it in time.

            6 more seconds, Tea bit her lip, staring at the door. She gave up and looked at Don Don who smiled shyly.

            5……………4…Kaiba ran down the street, out of breath. He was almost close to the door. He staggered down, crossing the front lawn.  3……………………2……………Kaiba turned the knob opened and tripped in. He finally saw Tea. 

            Tea jerked her head, completely forgetting every surroundings. Her smile widened as her eyes shimmered in joy. Kaiba fought through the crowds, finally reaching Tea at last.

            1…Kaiba and Tea gave a long passionate kiss on the lips, only releasing for breath. They kissed again. They stopped and Kaiba looked into her eyes.

            "Happy New Years," he said, breathing heavily. Tea smiled and wrapped her arms around her boyfriend, kissing him again.

            "Happy New Years."

_"If there exists one miracle in this world That is, yes, that I was...I was able to meet you."___

Ichigo- ahh! Aren't you happy that we finally put in a happy ending for once? And HEY! Look at that! I remembered to put a quote! Wow! They're not mine though!

 Bakura- ah man! You suck Ichigo! Why do you have to put something so…happy!

Kaiba- I'm going to throw up. All this valentine thing is getting me sick.

Bakura- me too!

Ichigo- no, I think that has to do with the cookies you stole!

Bakura- It wasn't my fault the girl was holding them out in the open where anybody could get them!

Kaiba- *turns pale* I need to…*run to the restroom*

Ichigo- -_- well, that's just nice. ^_^ but I hope you guys liked this little Valentines treat. Review please! 


	6. Lost Memories

Ichigo- ALOHA! ^_^

Bakura- *still sick from last chippie* O.O ugh…mushiness… 

Kaiba- *in trashcan* hey look what I found!  *takes pieces of paper out of the trash* it's Ichigo's story! HaHa!

Ichigo- -_- you did that kaiba so you can annoy me

Kaiba- *shocked in disbelief* how could I do such a horrible thing like that! I did not do it! 

Ichigo- *puts random tape inside of random vcr*

----Tape----

Ichigo- *laughing at Bakura throwing up*

Tape shows Kaiba shoving paper into trashcan

Kaiba- *stops shoving and stares at the camera* ummm..hehe…*runs away*

-10 minutes later-

Bakura- ugh mushiness

Tape shows Kaiba putting trash can in front of them so they could see* Hey look what I've found!

----End Tape----

Ichigo- *raises eyebrow at Kaiba*

Bakura- O.o *shakes head in disappointment* That's sad…after all I've taught you about how to steal and kill, you're here taking trash out. I thought I taught you better. *about to cry* but I guess…I guess I was wrong! *Cries dramatically and runs away*

-Moment of Silence- *coughs*

Kaiba- *looks away* ummmm…hehe…*runs away*

Ichigo- you guys are just gonna leave me here!?!?! 

*no answer*

Ichigo- *rubs forehead and leans on random payphone* huh? Where did that come from?

Carrot top from commercial- remember! Just dial down the center.  Its 1-800- ATT.

Ichigo- GAH! *runs away* *runs back and faces readers* Review! *looks at Carrot top waving a phone at her and smiling* ack!!!

Drifting Away- Lost Memories

            Kaiba laid his jacket down onto his bed after coming home from the party and kissing Tea goodnight. Today turned out okay after all. He drew a breathe out. He was exhausted. Too exhausted to even think about the company right now. He laid on his bed, closing his eyes. Maybe he'll visit Mokuba tomorrow. It would lift his spirit a little to see his little brother again. 

            Tea moved into the balcony. She felt the cool breeze on his face and she welcomed it, smiling a bit. Tonight was the first time in a long time that she actually forgot about her problems. Unfortunately, the memories flooded back again. Tea frowned and rubbed her temples. _Why can't this be just a big dream? _She can't just push this matter off. For goodness sake, it was her mom that she was talking about. But how could she tell them? Tea's heart sunk in a deep pool of nothingness. She rubbed her eyes, opening them slowly as her brunette hair gently fell to the side. Her bottom lip trembled a bit. Tea shook her head, letting go of all the agony she had in herself that night. She had to use the strength that she has left.

--------------

            Kikyo sighed, laying her head on top of Yami's shoulder while watching television. It was really painful to watch Tea talk happily to that guy at the party. Almost like she already forgot about her father and the sudden disappearance of her mom. She frowned a bit but then continued watching the show. 

            Yami turned his head to face her, raising an eyebrow in worry. She seemed so tired and out of place. 

            "You okay?" Yami asked. Kikyo looked at him immediately and nodded slowly, moving her head back to its original position to watch the show. Yami looked down and then stared at the television. 

            Kikyo's brother walked in rudely, passing them to walk in the kitchen. He looked the same age as Yami, with bleached blonde hair. He was clearly Asian though, but the looks of his face. His eyes narrowed as he stared down the path he was going through. Passing the TV in the front of the couple, he walked in the kitchen with blue baggy pants, a gray shirt, and a blue unbuttoned shirt on top of it. He was nicely dressed, with a hint of toughness to cover it if it didn't show on the outside.

            He walked out of the kitchen holding a bag of chips, eyes narrowed still and a face that kind of resembled Seto Kaiba's…scowling.

            "Hey Jin Jin," Kikyo said tiresome, smiling slightly to her older brother with her eyes drooping to sleep. The boy's scowl quickly faded into a childish smile. Yami smiled too.

            "Hey," Yami said cheerfully. The boy's smile ended, but nodded politely. Yami frowned in curiosity. 

            "JIN JIN! Bryan's on the phone," Lynn called from upstairs. Jin Jin just stood them with his face looking down. Lynn came halfway down the stair, her hair coming down. She looked just like her older sister who just 6 months older. Yami looked back at her and waved. Lynn waved back happily and smiled widely. "Hey Yami! What's up," she asked cheerfully.

            "Nothing much, just watching some videos," Yami answered, turning back to face the television. Jin Jin rolled his eyes, but made sure no one saw it. As much as he didn't like Yami that much, he didn't want to disappoint his little sister. It burned a deep hole in him though. If Yami ever hurt her, he thought, not only will he answer to me. He'll just have to answer to my friends too.

            Jin Jin and his friends weren't in a gang or something. They weren't into guns or gang fights. They were just a group of close friends who would back each other up no matter what. They were kind of like Yugi's gang, only…they weren't that nice. They were polite to people, but was never able to really be friendly to anybody. And if they were pushed to the edge, they could get violent. Nonetheless though, they were good people.

            "Stop daydreaming about your next date with Ana and get your butt up here," Lynn called out, frustrated. Jin Jin woke into reality, jerking his face and pausing before running up to get the phone. He smiled genuinely at Kikyo and then turned his head toward Yami. He smiled weakly at him, before walking upstairs with the phone in his hand.

------------------------------

            Kaiba looked at his little brother lying helplessly on the hospital bed. He sat on the chair beside him, staring endlessly and waiting anxiously. Kaiba stared for a second more and then gave up, shutting his eyes in exhaustion. He slouched in his chair, blowing a strand of hair out of his eye. He rubbed his eyes slowly, a big lump in his throat. It's been about 2 months. 2 long months. 

            He folded his arms and rest them on top of his chest, trying to rid of all the thoughts out of his head. He smiled slightly and crookedly at what he would do when Mokuba would wake up. He would devote all his free time to his little brother. His heart started beating with anticipation while he breathed in heavily. He couldn't wait til' he would wake up and all this mess would be over. That is, of course, if they ever get through with Kaiba Corp's profit and money.

            Kaiba groaned in disappointment. Nothing in his life was easy. People may think of his life as that, but in no way, shape of form, were they ever close. His life was nothing but a big ball of nothingness that people seemed to think of it as of superiority. The young boy cleared his throat and straightened his black trench coat. Of course, he was superior. He lowered his head. Or at least he used to be. At least he used to be the richest man alive. At least he used to be the Duel Monsters World Champion. At least he used to be the most responsible brother to live. But all of that went down the drain. All of that turned against him and all the work he did to put himself to the top failed him. 

            Now all that he could do was start back at the bottom, in the dirt. Maybe he should have just taken his stepfather's advice to go back to the orphanage. Either way, he could never make Mokuba's life easy.

            Kaiba slowly lifted his head to see his little brother lying down. Strands of hair covered the eyes of Seto, but his eyes were weary with lack of sleep.

            A hand moved slightly on the hospital bed. Kaiba gasped under his breathe, eyes wide open. Tears welled up in his eyes. Mokuba's head began to move from right to left as his eyes tightened together. Kaiba clasped his hands to his little brother's. A smile crept onto his face.

            Mokuba's eyes lit up in confusion as he tried to sit up. He stopped, flinching a bit. He squinted his eyes to see the person in front of him, smiling ridiculously. All Kaiba heard was a soft whisper.

            "Who are you?"

Ichigo- *runs away from angry mokuba fans* ack! get away from me! I'm sorry! I'm SORRY!

Bakura- don't worry Ichigo! I'm here to rescue you! *chases her with dagger with the others* just come here and we won't hurt you! We promise!

Kaiba- you made me brother forget me! No one forgets this gorgeous body that is me! *grabs some random person* you know me, right *desperate*

Random person- *terrified* ummm…you're that…umm…that *runs away*

Ichigo- please don't flame! Just review! Review for the good of mokuba! 

Kaiba- and for the popularity of me! *cries* 


	7. Secrets

Ichigo- * has blood all over her* 

Bakura-  O.O I knew those mokuba fans were mad, but I never knew they were violent! What happened?!?!?!

Ichigo- O.o what are you talking about?

Bakura- the blood!

Ichigo- this is just ketchup!

Kaiba- *dips a fry into ketchup and eats it* mmmm…

Bakura- why do you have ketchup all over you?

Ichigo- well…while the Mokuba fans were chasing me with knives and daggers…WHICH NO ONE SHOULD EVER DO AT HOME…unless its rubber and the person you're chasing is you're imaginary friend name Bob. Better yet, is should be a balloon shaped like dagger so when you stab it, the thing goes POP! No! better yet, make a balloon gun so that when you fling it at someone's head it would go BOOM! No no! better yet-

Kaiba- ICHIGO! 

Ichigo- what?

Kaiba- Focus…

Ichigo- oh…oh yea…well anyways, while this group of Mokuba fans were chasing me with daggers and knives. I found the art of camouflage! So I was at McDonald's because they sold free ketchup packets. So I tried to dress up as a fire hydrant! 

Bakura- *shakes head* and it worked?

Ichigo- surprisingly yes….but I think that hiding in my authoress room and locking it with heavy duty nails had something to do with it…

Kaiba- *sigh* well my fellow fans and mokuba's fans…I am truly sorry for the situation, but yes…Mokuba does have amnesia…

Ichigo- BUT HE WILL GET BETTER! Just not very soon…but he will get better somewhere in the story. You'll see why I had Mokuba come down with it. Mokuba is kind of like the neutral person in the story now. In that case, since he doesn't know what is happening, he doesn't have a real opinion to a person. Thus, he won't be on anyone's side. Thus, he's the only one with an honest thought that is not bias. But I won't agree that Kaiba and Mokuba will be on the same terms all the time. Sometimes they will, sometimes they'll not.

Bakura- why does bias mean?

Ichigo- I don't know….it just sounds so mature! Look it up in the thesaurus!

Kaiba-…you mean the dictionary?

Ichigo- uh…yea, of course!

Bakura- anyways, on with the chippie? 

Kaiba- yea, sure..REVIEW GUYS FOR MOKUBA"S SAKE!

Ichigo- ketchup is really good, you know?

Drifting Away- Secrets

            "Who are you?" Mokuba eyes squinted hard, seeing the pale-faced boy in front of him. He soon panicked, looking around the unfamiliar place. "Where am I?" His lips trembled.

            Kaiba froze, shocked with disbelief. His jaw dropped slightly as he breathed in and out. His eyes held confusion while his hands and body stood still. He bit his lip a bit to hide the quivering. 

            The doctor came in and smiled happily at the brothers.

            "Well I guess little Mokuba here just woke up," he cheerfully, "I see that it was a full recovery." Kaiba cleared his throat, trying not to scoff at how wrong the doctor was. Mokuba continued to look at the young boy in front him who looked terrible. Kaiba felt his little brother eyeing him so he jerked his head toward him and tried to smile. Although he tried, his smile turned into a weak frown as creases folded on his forehead.

            Kaiba stood up and walked slowly to the doctor who was signing the papers. The hard cold face he had faded away into a face that was fragile and scared. Kaiba knocked on the desk to catch the doctor's notice. Kaiba tried to put on his business like face, but Mr. Robertson saw the worry.

            "Is everything okay?" he asked gently. Kaiba's hand shook as he tried to let the words flow out of his mouth.

            "Ummm," he started, "How long does it take for a person to regain his memory." Mr. Robertson stood there for a moment and then sighed, shaking his head.

            "I was afraid this would happen," he said sadly. He gently led Kaiba outside of the room and closed the door. Kaiba cleared his throat, preparing for the message.

            "Afraid that what would happen," Kaiba asked softly. The doctor sighed, taking his glasses off the clean them. Kaiba waited patiently as he put them back on his face.

            "I'm sorry, but your brother is suffering from amnesia." Kaiba looked to his side, closing his eyes.

            "How long does it take, though, for my brother to regain his memory," Kaiba asked worriedly, his voice shook in fear.

            "I wish I could tell you an exact time and date, Mr. Kaiba," the doctor paused, "but I'm afraid that is not possible. I can only tell you the same answer I have told you 2 months ago. There is no way in determining this type of situation. The best advice I could give you is to get him familiarized with things from the past. Again, I'm very sorry." The doctor patted Kaiba's back and walked away to leave Kaiba staring at the floor.

-----------------------------------------

            Tea lay on her bed in Kaiba's mansion, staring at her mother's photo. Tears welled in her sapphire eyes, but never landed anywhere else. She then shut them in disgrace, burying her face into the fluffy pillow.

            "I'm so sorry, mom," Tea whispered to herself. "But I can't be strong. I'm just not strong enough to do this alone." She was too lost in her thoughts to notice her hand gripping the picture so tightly that it crumbled into a ball. "I'm not strong at all."

-------------------------------------

            Kaiba drove inside the car, looking directly on the rode. Mokuba leaned his head on the window, staring at the many buildings. He looked up at Kaiba.

            "So, you're my brother," Mokuba started, "Who owns this whole company called Kaiba Corp." Kaiba nodded quickly. Mokuba looked down and then stared at the window again, giving silence in the car again with awkwardness. Mokuba started again.

            "Where are our parents?" Mokuba asked. Kaiba heartbeat went faster at the thought of his parents.

            "They passed away when I was 5 and when you were just born," Kaiba said, his voice low and grave, "In a car crash. We got sent to an orphanage where we met Gazaburo, once CEO of KaibaCorp. He died and I took over." Kaiba left out the facts about Gazaburo's actions and how he died." Mokuba nodded again.

            "I guess he was nice then, to let us in," Mokuba asked. Kaiba didn't say anything at first. Mokuba felt some tension and closed his mouth. He was surprised to see Kaiba talk again.

            "No," he said plainly, "He wasn't nice at all. I had to beat him in a chess game for him to agree." Mokuba raised his eyebrow.

            "A chess game?"

            "He was the world champion." Mokuba's eyes widened.

            "And you beat him? But you were only 5 years old." Mokuba exclaimed.

            "I was smart for my age." Kaiba started, pausing a bit to think.

            "I bet that many people wanted you for a child then." Mokuba said logically, "Why didn't you go with them." He heard a sigh come from Kaiba. Mokuba frowned a bit.

            "Because I wasn't willing to go without you," Kaiba said finally, "The couples often come and go. They didn't have enough money to get both of us so I rejected their offers." The younger one smiled. Even though he knew this boy for only an hour, he felt happy to know that the older boy who sat next to him told him things. But something worried him. Almost frightened him. Kaiba's face seemed so cold and harsh. He felt as if he was keeping things from him, but he dared not to ask what they were.

            "Thank-you," Mokuba said softly, looking at the boy whose face was cold and shrill. Kaiba glanced at his little brother and his face softened a bit.

            "I know that my face and my words don't tell the same thing," Kaiba started, "But you have to understand, Mokuba." Kaiba stopped and shut his mouth. Mokuba stared at the boy as he waited.

            "Understand what?" Mokuba asked, puzzled.  Kaiba paused.

            "I did things in my past that I wasn't too proud of, Mokuba," Kaiba said softly, "Our life wasn't easy. It was never easy. I had to fight to get us where are today and even today we still have troubles." Mokuba looked down. Kaiba started again, "But when I say that everything that I did was for us. That I did it for you. I mean that. And there's nothing hard about understanding that I care about you. The only thing that I could think of that would be hard is understanding why I chose the path that we're on now." Mokuba looked up and saw his brother's narrow eyes looking onto the rode and he saw the honesty beneath the icy barrier in them. Mokuba continued looking out the window.

---------------

Tea's POV

----------------

            School started the next day. I woke up in the morning, dizzy with a headache. But that didn't matter. Nothing mattered to me the way they used to. Not anymore. The guilt I feel inside my gut is too much for me to handle by myself. My problem is too much for me to handle. But I have to stay strong. If I don't, who will?

            So I'm standing in front of the mirror, putting on my face. The face everyone saw everyday. The one that will get me through another day. And I'll pretend like everything is okay and live a false life. But my failure to my mom and the lies I will tell to my friends will always stick in my head.

            I caressed my cheek with my hand, inspecting this face that I didn't know anymore. I looked to the side in disgust. I can't go on like this and pretend like everything is normal. I can't lie to my friends, but I can't tell them either. The thought of asking for help for the first time and appear as a young fragile girl that has been hiding is just too much for me. But yet, my mother is looking up to me to save her. How can I choose between the reputation I hold among my peers, the ones who could judge me everyday based on everything, and the reputation I hold for someone I care for?

---------------------------

            Tea sat in the classroom quietly while her friends continued their conversation of coming back from school. She watched Kaiba walked slowly to his seat, not even looking at her. Tea frowned, seeing the dark rings under his eyes from lack of sleep.

            "Ah school, how I loathe ya," Joey sighed happily. Yugi smiled, holding a comb.

            "And as if it didn't get any worse," Yugi started, "Yami used up all of our hair gel yesterday." Tristan looked at Yugi's hair that now looked like a puffy deformed afro.

            "We noticed," Tristan said. Bakura smiled.

            "Way to bring the 70's a brand new look, Yug," Bakura smiled. Yugi laughed sarcastically. Yugi then changed into Yami, who looked appalled.

            "This is not a laughable matter," Yami said, "No pharaoh should have to go through this kind of torture." Joey grinned while Kikyo laughed at Yami's outrage.

            "I think it looks sexy," Kikyo responded.

            "Of course you do," Yami said, still outraged, "Girls are mesmerized by my hotness. But I don't want to go through the torture of having this hideous thing on my head."

            "But you won't have to as long as Yugi is the one in control of the body," Joey said. Yami smiled and changed back into Yugi.

            "HEY! YOU CAN'T JUST KICK ME OUT OF MY OWN SPIRIT ROOM!" Yugi screamed. A group of students, who were already in class before the bell, jerked their heads toward Yugi. Yugi blushed madly. "Drama class.  I play the child," Yugi said to the class, using the statement as an excuse. The gang was snickering while the students slowly went back to their own conversations. The gang then burst out laughing. Bakura glanced at the sulking Tea and frowned a bit.

            "Hey, are you okay Tea," Bakura asked. The gang stopped their conversation and looked at Tea. Tea looked at the 5 faces eyeing her worriedly and completely panicked.

            "Yea, of course I'm okay. Why would you think I'm not because I am. I really am." Tea babbled. 

            "Are ya sure," Joey asked. Tea nodded timidly and smiled.  The group fell quiet until Yugi came talked.

            "We're really sorry about what happened to you," Yugi said sympathetically. Tea shook her head and smiled.

            "Don't be." Tea said, wishing that the subject would just go away. Unfortunately, it didn't.

            "Have ya heard anything bout' yo ma," Joey asked. The girl shook her head again. Too her relief, the first bell sounded. The teacher came in and straightened the papers on his desk while the students waited patiently and quietly. After he was done, he looked at the class and smiled.

            "Today we have a new student," Mr. Ferrin stated, "It seems that we have that lately." He looked at the students smiling, anxiously waiting to see the person. Mr. Ferrin's grin grew wider. "It also seems that my students here enjoy it too." The class laughed. The teacher waited until everyone was quiet again. "I'm pleased to introduce Donichi Kuwaba." 

A boy, Tea recognized as Don Don, walked in shyly in a black suit. The girls giggled softly as Don Don nodded to the class and smiled while looking to the floor. Tea smiled slightly, almost chuckling after seeing how nervous he looked with his hands and legs shaking like crazy. Don Don took off her jacket and swung it over his shoulder revealing a regular white cotton shirt.

            "God, look at his body," Tea heard a girl behind her whisper to another, "All slim, yet muscular. Can you say hot?" Tea shook her head, trying to hide the laugh.

            "He's more cute and innocent than hot and wild," another girl chipped into the conversation, "I mean look at his hair and his puppy-dog eyes. He's just so cute." 

            "You're right. He is cute," the girl exclaimed. The girls in the class giggled madly. Tea didn't hear the rest of the conversation among the girls.

            Tea looked at Don Don, looking nervously around the room. His eyes fell on Tea as she saw the relief flood back into his eyes. He smiled weakly at Tea and looked down.

            The girls stopped talking as they saw the little act. They looked at Tea as their jaws dropped down. The girl next to her looked at her, amazed.

            "You know him?" Tea shrugged.

            "I bumped into him while it was raining. He just gave me an umbrella. Then we saw each other at a party. Nothing special." The other girl laughed, her eyes playing.

            "Nothing special?" the girl exclaimed, "I wish I was you." Tea laughed and continued looking. The teacher saw the surprise in all the girls' faces. He smiled at Tea and the girls.

            "I think we have some competition here," he said. Tea looked back at Kaiba, who looked at Don Don with no expression on his face. He looked at Tea and smiled faintly at her. He wrote something on a piece of paper and passed it to her through a row people. Tea opened the letter.

**I guess the girls aren't the only ones who have competition.**

**I guess I'll have to work hard too cause'**

**I have to admit…he's hot. So hot we should call 911 cause' he is on fire!**

Tea smiled genuinely and wrote something back, telling someone to pass it to him. Kaiba opened the letter.

**If you keep on thinking that way, then maybe I'm the one who has competition.**

Tea watched as Kaiba chuckled. She received the note back.

**I have something to tell you after class.**

Tea frowned and looked at Kaiba. He looked weary and out of place. 

**Is something wrong?**

Kaiba rubbed his temples.

**I'll tell you after class.**

            Class ended and Tea tried to be the first one out the door, but it didn't happen. The gang caught her.

            "Why are ya in such a hurry, Tea," Joey asked. Tea sighed inside, but kept a smile plastered on her face.

            "Kaiba has something important to tell me," Tea said half-truthfully, "He seemed so distressed." The gang nodded.

            "Well, hope Kaiba feels better," Tristan said. Tea looked down, but smiled.

            "We'll be waiting for you at lunch," Bakura said cheerfully, "Maybe we should invite that new guy. What's his name? Donichiwa?" 

            "Yea," Joey continued, "Me, Tristan, and Tea met him at the party. We call him Don Don." 

            "Maybe we should then," Kikyo said happily, "What's the harm in letting a new guy in the group. Then I won't be the new one around here." The gang agreed and headed toward the lunchroom. Kikyo gave Tea a brief hug and then let go before smiling.

            "I'm really sorry about your parents again," Kikyo said softly. Tea sighed and looked at her.

            "It's okay already," Tea laughed, "You guys are going to have a heart attack. Don't worry about me. I'll…I'll deal."

            "Well, just don't forget that we'll be here for you whenever you need help," Kikyo said. Tea's heart drew a pit as she felt a lump in her throat. "Anything. You can come to us. We'll always be there for you no matter what." Tea did nothing but nodded her head.

----------------

            Tea met Kaiba at her locker. He greeted her with a warm hug and smile.

            "How are you doing," Tea asked, brushing a strand of hair off his forehead as he held his hands on top of her hips.

            "Mokuba woke up from his coma," Kaiba said sadly. Tea smiled happily, elated. Then she saw the look on his face and stopped smiling.

            "What happened," Tea asked seriously. Kaiba looked to the side. Tea grabbed his chin, making him look at her. "What happened?" she demanded.

            "He has amnesia," Kaiba groaned, "I don't know what to do. What am I suppose to do? I've never been in these kinds of situations before. How can I make him remember? He needs to remember me, Tea. I'm the only one he has and I can't even protect him. How can I help him if I can't even protect him." Kaiba panicked, his hands shook quickly. 

            "It's okay, Seto," Tea said, trying to calm him down. "I understand how you feel Kaiba, but it's going to be alright."

            "Bu-,"

            "It's going to be alright," Tea said, smiling. Her smile faded a bit, but she tried to look happy, "I mean, at least you get to see him now and talk to him." Kaiba looked at her with confusion, but was soon filled with regret.

            "Hey, are you okay," Kaiba asked worriedly, "Have you heard anything about your mom?" Tea closed her eyes and then looked at him.

            "I'm okay. I don't know if my mom is though," she started. Kaiba cocked his head to the right.

            "Why do you think that?" Kaiba asked. Tea bit her lip.

            "I don't know," Tea lied, "Wouldn't you think the same thing?" Kaiba stood there, trying to think. He shook his head and sighed.

            "And thus the headaches start all over again," Kaiba chuckled dryly. Tea laughed, putting her arms around his neck.

            "We can have headaches together," Tea smiled.

            "Let the battle begin," Kaiba said, smiling down at her.

            "Battle of what," Tea smiled, looking suspiciously.

            "Battle of medicine," Kaiba smiled down at her, "There's bound to be a fight over that bottle of Tylenol." Tea laughed and kissed him on the lips, letting go and looking into his eyes.

            "Thank you," Tea said truthfully, "You make things so much better."

            "I was going to say the same thing," Kaiba started, "The only difference is that you make everything so much better. For everyone." Tea looked down in guilt, hiding her face so Kaiba wouldn't see it. 

            "Not everyone," Tea said, trying to laugh. Kaiba chuckled and looked up to the ceiling. He looked back at her and smiled, his eyes dancing.

            "Well, a lot then," Kaiba said. Tea's pit in her heart deepened as she gulped silently. She turned her attention back to him. "You made my life worth living." Tea blushed madly and hugged him tightly, never wanting to let go.

            "We're perfect together." Tea said softly. "Nothing could ever tear us apart." Kaiba kissed the top of her forehead and squeezed her tight.

            "You got that right," Kaiba said. He let go and looked into her eyes with his smile ever so charming and sweet and his eyes glistening in the light. The feeling made her melt and forget any problem she had. "I love you, you know that right?" Tea held him again.

            "Yea," she said, leaning her head on his shoulder, "I love you too." Kaiba kissed her, hugging her again.

            "I'll always be there for you if you're ever in trouble, Tea," he said to her. Tea closed her eyes as the guilt inside increased and the urge to tell him what's been going on surged through. "I'll always be by your side." Tea knew how much her friends cared for her, especially the gang and Kaiba. Tea bit her lip and slowly looked up to Kaiba, trying her best to smile widely. 

            "I know you will. And I'll be by yours." Tea answered, trying to keep cool.

            "And you know that the gang will be beside you too, right," Kaiba asked softly. "We'll always be there with you." Tea closed her eyes, shutting her eyelids tightly. 

            "I wouldn't expect anything less."

Ichigo- PLEASE REVIEW! I don't like having ketchup on me anymore *has people dipping fries on her* SOMEONE GET THEIR HAND OFF MY BUTT!

Bakura- well I can't do that if you're sitting on it!

Kaiba- why is your hand there in the first place?

Bakura- Ichigo took my Barbie do-…I mean GI Joe action figure and sat on it…

Ichigo- you wouldn't let me play with it!

Bakura- and have you ruin the beautiful silky hair of Stacy--..umm…Stacy's husband I mean…ummm…Stacy's husband…*looks at mustard* Stacy's husband named Mustard… *looks at table* Stacy's husband named Mustard-table…yes, Mustard-table

Ichigo- O.o

Kaiba- anyways, please review this chippie to read more of this story and to see the full recovery of Mokuba somewhere in the story!

Bakura- GIVE ME MUSTARD-TABLE, ICHIGO!

Ichigo- never! It is not yours anymore! It is mine and I shall call it by a more sophisticated name! I call it by Mustard-Desk! MUAHAHAHA*chokes*


	8. TwoSided Lie

Ichigo- welcome!

Kaiba- to the paradise of Ichigo!

Bakura- where the wonders in here are crap!

Ichigo- ^_^ yes yes! The wonders in here are- *stops* HEY!

Bakura- well it said here in the script

Ichigo- KAIBA!

Kaiba- *eating a sandwich* my fingers must have slipped

Ichigo- okay, whatever…I'll just pretend to ignore you…*drools* shinhwa

Kaiba- Ichigo…

Ichigo- Kaiba! You broke my concentration! *drools* shinhwa

Bakura- Ichigo

Ichigo- gah! What!

Kaiba and Bakura- *points at readers*

Readers- where's the story?

Ichigo- oh yea! *drools* shinhwa

Kaiba and Bakura- ICHIGO!

Ichigo- what!

Kaiba- the readers!

Ichigo- oh…oh yea! here's Chippie 8 of Drifting Away! Please *stops* *drools* shinhwa….

Bakura- ICHIGO!

Ichigo- huh?!

Bakura- the readers!

Ichigo- oh yea! Please review!

Drifting Away- Two-Sided Lie

            "Miss Gardener, may I see you for a moment," the teacher said from the end of the large studio. Tea, who was stretching on the floor, stopped and turned her head to see the 20 young ballerinas look at her. Tea turned a deep red shade and hid her face. _Did I do something wrong? _

            Tea met the dance instructor outside the studio. 

            "Yes ma'am," Tea asked. The lady folded her arms and looked at Tea.

            "There's a competition down at Julliard, June 25," the teacher stated, "More like an audition actually." 

            "Why do you say that, Ms. Shina," Tea asked in curiosity.

            "Julliard is looking for someone to play as the little girl in the Nutcracker," Ms. Shina said, smiling sweetly when she saw the girl's eyes widen in joy. It was always Tea's dream to play the main role in the Nutcracker. "I'm going to talk about this audition to the rest of the group, but I wanted to let you know privately. Believe it or not Tea, I believe that you have potential." Tea clasped her teacher's in thanks.

            "Thank you so much! Of course I would do love to try out," Tea said. 

            "There is a slight problem though," the lady said carefully, "I am very sorry to hear the news of your parents. Are you sure you're up to it?" Tea paused for a second, her heart sinking down a bit. She shook it off.

            "Yea of course," Tea said, nodding her head. Ms. Shina smiled proudly.

            "Then it's all set." The instructor went of to speak to the rest of the ladies about the auditions. Tea looked and smiled until the instructor closed the door. Then Tea sighed and pressed her back against the wall, closing her eyes.

-----------------------------------------------

            "I don't care," Kaiba yelled into the speaker, "Get whoever is responsible for this little fiasco immediately." Mokuba was going up to his room with a cup of milk and some cookies. The conversation that took place in the car softened Mokuba's fears a bit, but he still didn't know anything about himself as much as he wanted to. It was frustrating a bit. Maybe a whole lot, seeing all these pictures of him and not know where that took place. It felt awkward. 

            He faced school today. The people he guessed as his friends greeted him, but it gave him no joy to see such strangers hugging him and slapping him on the back. The only response he could give them was a fake smile and laugh. They showed their remorse of what the news had given them. He felt the bond they had with him, but he wanted to know more. He wanted to know what he did before this whole situation was in play.

            His brother, Kaiba, wasn't any different from the rest either. Of course he knew Kaiba cared for him. For goodness sake, Kaiba wouldn't even drive off until he saw his little brother walk into the school. But that was the only thing he knew. That Kaiba cared. He didn't know Kaiba's personality. He didn't even know his own personality. He was just this shell people called Mokuba. He didn't want to be a shell. He wanted to be Mokuba. He wanted to be the Mokuba who knew what was going on with his life. He wanted to be the Mokuba who knew exactly what was going on and not feel so awkward around people. But he wasn't Mokuba. Not anymore. 

            Mokuba stopped to hear yelling coming from his brother's office. Curious, he peaked in through the crack to see his big brother furious as ever. It frightened him anymore. What frightened him most was not the anger though…it was the distress. Mokuba raised an eyebrow, watching Kaiba's frustrated face.

            "No no no! I don't want that," Kaiba groaned, "Our company's profit and savings have gone down more than 75 percent. We are almost bankrupt and you and the workers are taking this as a joke." Kaiba's voice rose higher and higher. Mokuba's heart beat went faster and faster. Why was his brother so angry? Was his brother angry often?  His thoughts were soon interrupted again. 

            "No, never mind," Kaiba said in a defeated groan. "I'll just do it myself." Mokuba watched on as his brother hung up and sat on his chair. His elbows stood on the desk as Kaiba's face was covered by his hands. Mokuba cocked his head. His brother seemed so distressed. So out of place. Mokuba sighed and looked to the side. He wasn't the only one who needed some joy over here. Mokuba gently closed the door gently so that his brother would not notice him.

----------------------------

            Tea walked down the center of Domino City with a white sweater, a short black skirt, and black long boots. The cold breeze was still in play and Tea welcomed it. She sighed peacefully, smelling the aroma.  She closed her eyes a bit, long enough to bump into somebody.

            "Oh, I'm sorry," Tea said apologetically. She looked at the person and surprisingly, it was Don Don. The boy looked down, not noticing her at all. Don Don ran his hand through his  hair.

            "No, I'm sorry," he started, panicking, "I should watch my way." He looked up finally and looked relieved. "Oh, hey." He said, smiling slightly. Tea smiled warmly.

            "Hey," Tea said happily, "How was lunch with Yugi and the gang?" Don Don smiled widely.

            "They were great," he said easily, "Really fun." Tea nodded.

            "That's good."

            "Hey, can I ask you something?" Don Don said shyly. Tea looked on in curiosity.

            "Is Kikyo," he started, "going out with anyone?" Tea laughed.

            "Sadly yes," Tea said, "She's going out with Yami. Sorry." Don Don shrugged.

            "It's okay," he said, "And I guess you're going out with Seto Kaiba?" There was a slightly different tone in his voice when he said Kaiba's name, but Tea didn't notice it.

            "Yea," Tea said.           

"Well, just to ask…is Bakura with someone?" Don Don joked, smiling. Tea laughed, tilting her head back. "I'm just joking."

            "Sure," Tea said sarcastically. "Well I'll see ya at school then, eh?" Don Don nodded his head slowly.

            "Yup," He waved at her before digging his hands into his pockets. He walked past her, hunched, and walked into a store, two blocks down. 

-----------------------------

            Kikyo was seating at her desk when Yami walked into her room, dancing awkwardly with his headphones on. Kikyo raised her eyebrow and burst out laughing at him. Yami stopped laughing and looked appalled. Kikyo covered her mouth and waved a hand as Yami took of his headphones.

            "No no," Kikyo said, trying not to giggle, "Go on." Yami sighed and plopped onto her bed.

            "If you might know," Yami said proudly, "I'm proud of my dancing." Kikyo laughed harder.

            "I'm sure you are," Kikyo started. Yami strolled down to her desk, kneeling and resting his elbows on it. He then handed her his headphones to hear. The young girl gently put them on only to take it off a minute later.

            "Yami, this is Korean," Kikyo laughed. 

            "So," Yami protested, "It's BoA. It's catchy huh?" Kikyo opened her mouth in disbelief and rolled her eyes.

            "Yami, you don't even speak their language," Kikyo explained. Yami closed his eyes.

            "But I understand their heart," Yami exaggerated, holding his right hand to his chest. "Plus, BoA is one of the cutest girls in the whole world." He took out a picture of BoA out of his wallet to show Kikyo. 

            "You have a picture of her in your wallet?" Kikyo said. 

            "It's priceless," Yami said deeply, stroking the picture once in a while. Kikyo laughed. 

            "You know," Kikyo said carefully, smiling to the side. "You and my sister are the same."

            "Why is that?"

            "You guys both like BoA," Kikyo started, "She has a poster of her in her bedroom and some music videos that she downloaded on her computer." Yami closed his eyes.

            "I envy your sister so much right now," Yami said, leaning on the desk now. Kikyo laughed.

            "So I guess," Kikyo said, wrapping her arms around him, "That I wouldn't have a chance against BoA, hm? Would you have me or BoA" 

            "Tough question, I really don't-," Kikyo broke his talking by kissing him. She then let go with Yami raising a finger.

            "Definitely you," Yami said right after. Kikyo laughed and continued to smooch her boyfriend. She broke it off.

            "Well that's too bad," she said, showing him her desktop on the computer. "Because it just so happens that I like Shinhwa." Yami's eyes widened, but then relaxed, pretending to not care.

            "They're not as cute as me," he said. Kikyo laughed. Yami looked at her again, "And what happened to the "You don't even know their language!" scenario." Kikyo kissed him again.     

            "But I understand their heart," she said, mocking Yami. 

"I think the only thing you understand about them is the hotness," Yami smiled, "That will never match up my level." They both laughed and continued talking.

---------------------

            "Are you making any progress," a big broad man said, sitting in front of his desk with his feet on top of it. The young boy in front of him stood tall, wearing black slacks and a white decorated shirt. The boy's eyes were narrow and direct. Two men stood beside each end of the door behind the boy. One man, about 2 years older than the boy stared at him, showing a hint of worry in his eyes.

            "Yes sir," the boy said immediately, a little quiver in his voice, "Yes I am." The man laughed menacingly, staring at the nervous lad. 

            "Don't look so worried," he said friendly, but distant. "It's not like…I'm going to kill you or anything. You've done your part…so far." The boy nodded quickly, his brown bangs falling over his eyes as he looked at the floor. He fumbled with his hands and slowly lifted his head. "Ruining Kaiba's little girlfriend's life, will surely put him such a wreck with his budget and his brother. It's only another problem that Kaiba just has to handle until he breaks down. Running him bankrupt is so pleasing to the eye."

            "May I ask you something," he said quietly, but directly. The man jerked his head to stare at the boy.

            "Make it quick. I'm on a busy schedule here," he said loudly. 

            "Why don't you just be done with Mr. Seto Kaiba," he said logically, "KaibaCorp will be rendered useless, with Mr. Kaiba gone and his younger brother suffering from amnesia. It would make it faster."

            "Are you questioning my ways, son," he growled lowly. 

            "No," the boy said, denying, "No, I didn't. I didn't have any intentions to question you, master Kuwaba." Mr. Kuwaba set his feet on the ground with a large thud that made the boy shiver. The man set his clasped hands to set them down on the wooden desk

            "You listen to me boy," he said lowly, but fiercely. "I'm the one you raised you after your poor pathetic parents abandoned you. I took you in." The boy's hands clenched into a ball, but he showed no sign of emotion. "My brother was weak. And I didn't do all of this just to make you just like your father. So don't question my authority and my ways. You'll see that it will only bring you misery. Yes, KaibaCorp will cut off quicker. But what fun would it be if you can't enjoy someone's distress?" A wicked smile was plastered onto Mr. Kuwaba's face. "To see the brat get what he deserves and more is more than a million to me. You get what I'm saying?"

            "Yes sir," the boy said quickly.

            "You must learn," he said again, "Only the ruthless survive in this world. Not the weak. That is why your father is where he is today.  They say kill your enemies quickly. But with Kaiba, that is not always the case. To watch the helpless crawl is more appealing."

            "Yes sir," the boy's eyes hardened, believing every word that came out of his uncle's mouth.

            "Now go do your work," he ordered, "There's still much to do, Donichi Kuwaba."

Ichigo- *gasp* Never expected that huh?!?!?! Hahahahaha

Kaiba and Bakura- *raises hands slowly and carefully* ummm…we kinda did….

Ichigo- oh…well *throws a ball at them and runs away*

2 minutes later

Ichigo- good…I lost them

Kaiba- umm…behind you

Ichigo- *turns around*

Bakura- ^_^ *waves* hi!

Ichigo- what! *runs away*

2 minutes later

Ichigo- that should have done it

Kaiba- *taps Ichigo* 

Ichigo- GAH! *falls over* how did you guys get here!

Bakura- you do know that you were just running around a room the whole time, right?

Ichigo- oh…well…*throws another ball and runs*

2 minutes later

Ichigo- GAH! You guys are still here!

Bakura- *rubs forehead* please review….


	9. A Spark In The Fire

Ichigo- SO SO SO SO SOOOORRRYYY!  2 months of not updating is so lonnnggg! Sorry!

Bakura- ichigo got us lost in McDonald's for a week…

Kaiba- and once we were out, we went west because we thought that that was where our basement was.

Ichigo- little did we know that our basement of wonders was just across the street

Kaiba- -- little did YOU know….

Bakura- kaiba! You were the one who told us to go left!

Kaiba- my compass said so!

Bakura- your compass is broken! Remember? Ichigo thought she could use it for hockey…

Ichigo- I scored a point with it, remember!?!?!

Kaiba- OH YEA! that was awesome!

Ichigo- anyways, please don't flame! Please read and review!

Drifting Away- A Spark In The Fire

            Don Don walked down a corridor of the 13th floor of the company building, digging his hands deep inside his jean pockets. He strolled down, remembering every word his uncle told him a while ago.

"_My brother was weak. And I didn't do all of this just to make you just like your father…To watch the helpless crawl is more appealing." _The boy's fragile eyes turned ice cold as he frowned deeply.

--Don Don's POV—

            I gritted my teeth and clenched my hands into a ball, leaning onto the wall. I'll never forgive my father for what he had done. Never. Never allow myself to even consider the slightest bit of doubt because, just like what my uncle said, my father was weak. And I'll never forgive my mother for following his footsteps and abandon me. The only way to survive this world is by trust. And if I die because I didn't trust my parents, then I'll die. But because my uncle took my brother and I in, the least I can do is show my gratitude and respect towards him.

            It's appealing. Almost fun to see this girl act so normal and yet quiver whenever speaking of her parents. Such a stupid girl Tea Gardener is. No. She's not ignorant anymore. She's beyond that point. Beyond that point where she can go back. Such a stupid girl to think that she can just go on with her life while still thinking of the safety of her mother. She'll break down eventually. And when she breaks down, Kaiba will break down. And that's all that matters now. To see the helpless crawl.

--------------------

            Kaiba dug into a pile of papers that seemed to be sitting on his desk for a couple of days. His face bore the resemblance of his older self. The pale and cold face everyone knew as the CEO of KaibaCorp. He looked around to no avail. The young boy sighed helplessly and ran his hand into his brown hair, continuing his quest to fix his company.

            A paper dropped. One Kaiba noticed all of a sudden. He raised an eyebrow, picking the single sheet and reading it.

In it was a company's request to be sister companies. As to agree in partnership. He remembered that he turned that offer down, thinking that another company would just get in his way.

            He looked down at the signature and the name shot a spark in his head. Kuwaba. He heard that name before. He knew of Donichiwa Kuwaba. But it wasn't he who strucke his mind and gave him an eerie feeling. All of a sudden, as if a light bulb appears, Kaiba began to remember.

-------------------

Flashback

-------------------

            "And now! The quarter-finals of the 6th annual Duel Monsters Championship," the announcer spoke loudly into the microphone, gesturing with his hands. Kaiba stood proudly in line with 4 other duelists. He smirked, already knowing the outcome of the finals. It was he that was going to win. Just like every yea.

            Beside him were two people. One short, known as Rex Raptor. Kaiba smirked at him. Dueling him would be a waste of his time. He could easily beat him, with his eyes closed if he had to. Behind him stood a boy, not much taller than him. He seemed to be his age. The stood silently, hands behind his back, his black hair covering his eyebrows and parts of his almond-shaped eyes. Kaiba did not recognize him. He must have been a new player. Kaiba shrugged though, not seeming to care. At the end, it will be he who will be victorious.

            Time passed as Kaiba watched the other finalist battle it out. He watched the boy sitting down from him, seeming to observe each finalist carefully and calmly until each person was defeated one by one.

            "And now for the finals," the spokesman said outloud. "Max Kuwaba vs. Seto Kaiba!" Kaiba smirked and simply walked toward the field.

            Max stared at him with no expression on his face, but mere mockery. He smiled pleasantly as he took his hand out to shake Seto's. Kaiba just stared at the raised hand, walking away without even touching it.

            They took their positions, as each player got ready of their decks.

            "I heard you duel well," Max said across the floor. Kaiba smirked, placing his deck to the right.

            "Then you heard right," Kaiba said in pride, "I haven't heard your name. I wonder why." Max just chuckled.

            "Underestimate me if you like, Seto Kaiba," Max said happily. His tone changed all of a sudden, but with a hint of mockery in it. His face turned to stone just then, "But underestimating me will not change what I can do." Kaiba gave no attention to his opponent.

            "Let's just duel," he sneered.

            The duel lasted until it left Kaiba with 350 life points left and Max down to his only 50. Kaiba smirked and leaned against his stage.

            "You're right," Kaiba said, "Underestimating you will not change your lack of ability to beat me." Max looked up innocently and smiled kindly.

            "We'll see," he said.

            "Come on then," Kaiba said, his eyes flaming with anticipation.

            "I will play Koumori Dragon, Celtic Guardian, and Bolt Penguin and fuse them with my polymerization card to fuse," Max said as tiny particles of light began to form, "the Twin-Headed Dragon with 2800 attack points." Kaiba scoffed.

            "Your dragon is strong," Kaiba started, "But it pales in comparison to my dragon, my Blue Eyes. But I'll pass my turn to prolong your misery." Max narrowed his eyes at Kaiba, which made Kaiba shut his mouth. Kaiba watched as his foe flipped a magic card onto the field."

            "You should have destroyed me when you had the chance," Max growled lowly, his bright and cheerful personality changing. "Now I will play the magic card Umi which changes the field into water." Kaiba couldn't understand what was happening until he was too late. He jerked his head to his Blue Eyes as it roared in pain by the terrible slash it received from the Twin-Headed Dragon." Kaiba couldn't believe his eyes as 300 of his life points were taken away and replaced with 50."

            "What?" Kaiba said outraged, "What did you do!" Max's smile came back as he talked sweetly to Kaiba.

            "It's quite simple," Max said in a matter-of –fact kind of tone, "Because of my Umi magic card, it enabled my monster to gained 500 more attack points, bringing it to 3300. Quite a move, don't you think?" Max smirked. He began again, "Don't underestimate people, Seto Kaiba. A life lesson everyone should learn." Kaiba scowled, biting his lower lip in the process. What he hated more than losing was being corrected of his mistakes.

            "Why so glum?" Max said smiled with sarcasm. Kaiba clenched his hands into fists and he swallowed his anger. The calmness and frightful steadiness held in Max's voice was aggravating to Kaiba's ears.

            "I have nothing, so I'll put a monster card in defense mode and a magic card." Kaiba said.

            "Cowering already?" Max said, "I thought you were better than that. So, as you said yourself, I'll prolong your misery and just place a magic card on the field and let my dragon destroy that hidden card of yours." The monster Kaiba placed was shattered into millions of shards until each disappeared as it fell.  Kaiba looked at his deck hoping a card that could destroy his opponent's monster. He closed his eyes, slowing moving his hands to reach for a card. His eyes opened to reveal a card that made his eyes widen in gratefulness. He looked at Max and smiled sweetly at him.        

            "I'm afraid that your idea of prolonging your defeat is soon coming to end as I play wasteland!" Kaiba said victoriously, "Which takes away your Umi card, bringing your monster's attack points back to 2800." Max smile stayed the same.

            "My monster is still strong, Seto Kaiba." Kaiba smiled.

            "But not as strong as my Blue Eyes!" Kaiba shouted, "I play my magic card Reborn to take my blue eyes back from the graveyard." Max grunted, almost overdramatically. Kaiba saw Max's hand creep to his magic card and knew that there was one flaw in his plan to win. Kaiba forgot Max's magic card on the field. Kaiba sighed inwardly. It was too late. But for some reason, Kaiba looked at the side of his eye at Max jerking his head to his left. His face turned into fear for a millisecond and then changed into a defeated look as he took his hand of his card. Kaiba knew it was his chance and so he took it. "Blues Eyes attack!"

            The duel was over.      

--------------------

            Tea walked into her room, a sigh of relief from her lips. Her eyelids drooped down as she dropped down to her bed, her hand lying restlessly on top of her forehead. This was just too much for her. Too much for her to handle by herself. She shook her head furiously. No. She won't let her friends get involved in this. This was her problem and she was going to deal with it herself. All by herself.

            And the first step to that begins now. Tea stood up, feeling needy of something. Anything. Anything that would take her mind of things.

            She reached into her bag and took out a bottle of alcohol she bought that day. She stared at the clear bottle in her hand as if thinking twice about her decision. She shrugged her worries off, gulping the bottle. Half way done, she closed the cap and hid it under the bed. She then passed out, looking like she was sleeping peacefully.

            Unknown to her though, Mokuba watched the whole action. He frowned a bit_. People should lock their doors or something._

---------------------

Flashback

---------------------

Max stared at him with no expression on his face, but mere mockery. He smiled pleasantly as he took his hand out to shake Seto's. Kaiba just stared at the raised hand, walking away without even touching it.

            They took their positions, as each player got ready of their decks.

            "I heard you duel well," Max said across the floor. Kaiba smirked, placing his deck to the right.

            "Then you heard right," Kaiba said in pride, "I haven't heard your name. I wonder why." Max just chuckled.

            "Underestimate me if you like, Seto Kaiba," Max said happily. His tone changed all of a sudden, but with a hint of mockery in it. His face turned to stone just then, "But underestimating me will not change what I can do." Kaiba gave no attention to his opponent.

            "Let's just duel," he sneered.

            The duel lasted until it left Kaiba with 350 life points left and Max down to his only 50. Kaiba smirked and leaned against his stage.

            "You're right," Kaiba said, "Underestimating you will not change your lack of ability to beat me." Max looked up innocently and smiled kindly.

            "We'll see," he said.

            "Come on then," Kaiba said, his eyes flaming with anticipation.

            "I will play Koumori Dragon, Celtic Guardian, and Bolt Penguin and fuse them with my polymerization card to fuse," Max said as tiny particles of light began to form, "the Twin-Headed Dragon with 2800 attack points." Kaiba scoffed.

            "Your dragon is strong," Kaiba started, "But it pales in comparison to my dragon, my Blue Eyes. But I'll pass my turn to prolong your misery." Max narrowed his eyes at Kaiba, which made Kaiba shut his mouth. Kaiba watched as his foe flipped a magic card onto the field."

            "You should have destroyed me when you had the chance," Max growled lowly, his bright and cheerful personality changing. "Now I will play the magic card Umi which changes the field into water." Kaiba couldn't understand what was happening until he was too late. He jerked his head to his Blue Eyes as it roared in pain by the terrible slash it received from the Twin-Headed Dragon." Kaiba couldn't believe his eyes as 300 of his life points were taken away and replaced with 50."

            "What?" Kaiba said outraged, "What did you do!" Max's smile came back as he talked sweetly to Kaiba.

            "It's quite simple," Max said in a matter-of –fact kind of tone, "Because of my Umi magic card, it enabled my monster to gained 500 more attack points, bringing it to 3300. Quite a move, don't you think?" Max smirked. He began again, "Don't underestimate people, Seto Kaiba. A life lesson everyone should learn." Kaiba scowled, biting his lower lip in the process. What he hated more than losing was being corrected of his mistakes.

            "Why so glum?" Max said smiled with sarcasm. Kaiba clenched his hands into fists and he swallowed his anger. The calmness and frightful steadiness held in Max's voice was aggravating to Kaiba's ears.

            "I have nothing, so I'll put a monster card in defense mode and a magic card." Kaiba said.

            "Cowering already?" Max said, "I thought you were better than that. So, as you said yourself, I'll prolong your misery and just place a magic card on the field and let my dragon destroy that hidden card of yours." The monster Kaiba placed was shattered into millions of shards until each disappeared as it fell.  Kaiba looked at his deck hoping a card that could destroy his opponent's monster. He closed his eyes, slowing moving his hands to reach for a card. His eyes opened to reveal a card that made his eyes widen in gratefulness. He looked at Max and smiled sweetly at him.        

            "I'm afraid that your idea of prolonging your defeat is soon coming to end as I play wasteland!" Kaiba said victoriously, "Which takes away your Umi card, bringing your monster's attack points back to 2800." Max smile stayed the same.

            "My monster is still strong, Seto Kaiba." Kaiba smiled.

            "But not as strong as my Blue Eyes!" Kaiba shouted, "I play my magic card Reborn to take my blue eyes back from the graveyard." Max grunted, almost overdramatically. Kaiba saw Max's hand creep to his magic card and knew that there was one flaw in his plan to win. Kaiba forgot Max's magic card on the field. Kaiba sighed inwardly. It was too late. But for some reason, Kaiba looked at the side of his eye at Max jerking his head to his left. His face turned into fear for a millisecond and then changed into a defeated look as he took his hand of his card. Kaiba knew it was his chance and so he took it. "Blues Eyes attack!"

            The duel was over.

----------------------------------------

            Kaiba barged into an office, red with anger. The boy sitting across from him looked up from his papers, smiling suddenly.

            "Why, hello Mr. Kaiba," he said innocently, "Quite a surprise visit from you don't you think?" Kaiba scowled, his eyes narrow and square.

            "Cut me the crap, Kuwaba," Kaiba hissed, "I know you're the one to blame for the hacking. Now own up or be a coward."

            "Hmmm…a coward you say?" Mr. Kuwaba said who seemed to be thinking sarcastically, "How in the first place do you think I'm the one who has brought your company down?  Please Mr. Kaiba. You're telling me things that are of no concern to me. Now if you excuse me, I have business to attend to." He stopped looking at Kaiba, and started to do his work again. Kaiba's vein pumped at the side of his forehead.

            "Don't act innocent," Kaiba growled, "Because everyone knows you're everything but that." Mr. Kuwaba chuckled slightly, eyeing Mr. Kaiba almost like he was toying with him. He rested his arms on the desk.

            "And you're always right, aren't you Kaiba," Mr. Kuwaba asked sarcastically, "Because everyone knows you're nothing but right. I guess your intelligence shows it in your progress with KaibaCorp, huh? Oh no wait. It doesn't." Kaiba walked straight to the boss's desk, placing his palms so he could lean over it to stare at his competitor.

            "If this is your way of breaking down a company for your own pathetic company to rise," Kaiba started, "Then trust me, you won't get far. You're messing with the big leagues. Didn't you're mother ever teach you to never play with fire? It might burn you." Mr. Kuwaba smiled, looking down and back up at him.

            "Trust me Kaiba, I'm the least person for you to be concern with," he said meekly, "After all, there is a certain girl." Kaiba's face hardened more.

            "You touch Tea Gardener," Mr. Kaiba warned, "And I swear that my affairs will be a great concern to you."

            "Oh Seto," the boy chuckled again, "You don't have to worry about me hurting her. You should worry more about what my uncle will do. After all, this is his company. I'm just is follower. Heck, I just came to Domino City about a month ago."

            "You are not welcomed here, Max," Kaiba growled. The boy chuckled.

            "I'm not welcomed here, you say," he said softly, yet in a mocked voice. He looked down and then slowly looked back up at Kaiba's face with taunting eyes. "I don't need you to give me permission on what I can and can not do. It doesn't matter that I'm welcomed here or not. Domino City is mine to do with as I please."

            "You can't just-,"

            "Because without me," the boy interrupted, "You'll have them to deal with." Kaiba turned around to glimpse at a group of about 12 men standing, their faces bearing the lives of innocents. Kaiba quivered slightly, but turned around to glare at Max. Max's eyes seemed to bury into Kaiba's with deep triumph as he smirked. "Atleast with me, the Gardener family will not cease to exist…not yet anyways."

            "Don't you go near, Tea Gardener," Kaiba growled, his anger getting the best of him. He grabbed Max by the collar until they were face to face. Kaiba stared ferociously at his opponent while the other just stared, mocking him. Seto then heard a click beside his ear. Slowly his eyes ran sideways, catching a glimpse of a silver pistol pointing at his head. He looked back at Max who smiled kindly, keeping calm through the whole conversation. Burning a hole in Kaiba's chest just the same way he did at the competition.

            "I suggest that you let go of me," he smiled. Kaiba let go and just gazed at him, not really knowing where he was going.

"So you can what?" Kaiba said sarcastically, "Beat me? Like the last time we met at the Duel Monsters Championship? Oh wait…you didn't." Memories came flooding back into Max's mind. His brother's face struck with disbelief flickering over and over. Max grit his teeth and clenched it hands.

Max sat up and walked up to Kaiba and stared into his eyes, "Silly Kaiba. You're mixing games up with real life situations. So let me give you some advise. I think you should listen to your little saying you got going for you. Stay away from the fire and you won't get burned."

Ichigo- I hoped this "chappie" pleased some of the angry fans enough that they won't send flames…or fake pizza men who come to the basement offering toy pizzas and throwing fake breadsticks from toys-r-us

Bakura- they're were toys? I thought they were real!    

Kaiba- geeze…it feels weird using chappie

Bakura- I know! Especially after all the times Ichigo threatened us with rubber ducks to say chippie…

Kaiba- sighs good times good times…


	10. A Different Story

Ichigo- here is another chappie! Brought to you by us, The Smart One, The Evil One, and The Freak!

Kaiba- I made up the name myself! guess whose who…

Bakura- obviously, Ichigo is the freak. You must be the evil one, and I, for sure, must be the smart one.

Kaiba- actually, you're the ev-

Bakura- holds knife I said I was the smart one

Kaiba- …O.O okay…

Bakura- okay, so we didn't get lost at McDonalds this time…

Ichigo- Therefore, a new chappie appears!

Bakura- so please review!

Kaiba- I think we should do another title name…

Ichigo- like Freaks For The Weird!

Kaiba- O.o……..that could work….

Drifing Away- A Different Story

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Tea's POV

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            I woke up today in the afternoon. The pang in my head won't go away, yet the memories of last night did. I clenched my hair, shutting my eyes from the sunrays falling from the window. I fell back onto the bed, tearing away from my surroundings and just falling into a pool of darkness. I rolled onto my side allowing my hair to fall over my face, my hands making a pillow for my head.

            It's weird. I feel…so different. It's like I wake up one day and I'm not human anymore. I was never one to believe that things change automatically. I always thought everything went out slowly in time. Careers, families, love. But now I know better.

            I'm human. As much as I want that to be, I know that inside…I'm not. I'm just a hollow shell. I'm a machine. I tell people what they want to hear, act the way they want me to act. And when I finally become my old self, no one is there. No one is there to pressure me, to define my personality, to live my life.

            And that is when I'm most at peace, when I'm alone. When I'm alone looking at the sky, dancing in the rain, looking at my reflection at the fountain. And even then, I still feel so hopeless. Looking at the sky to find some meaning, to understand why I came here, who I am, where I will go. Dancing to in the rain, just to cover the tears in my eyes from all the unanswered questions building up in my heart. Looking at my reflection, trying to make it happy. But the end, it's all lies though.

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            Monday came. Kaiba walked through the corridor, fumbling with his hands. His meeting with Max was disturbing. He stopped at a door, peering through the crack to find Tea putting her hair in a neat ponytail in front of the mirror. He frowned.

            He wanted to protect Tea from what ever Max had planned. What did he want with her anyways? But that question, he knew, wouldn't be answered for a long time. He looked at Tea again, her eyes puffy and her face pale. Still, he saw her sigh and pull a smile on her face. He smiled inwardly, leaning slightly on the door.

            Things had been tough on Tea. He didn't need to add on to that pile.

            Lost in his thoughts, he did not notice Tea walking up and opening the door. With Kaiba leaning on it, he soon fell on top of Tea. Tea gasped and Kaiba grunted. Soon, their faces were looking at each other.

            Tea smiled shyly as Kaiba blushed madly. He soon got up, pulling Tea with him.

            "Sorry about that," Kaiba said timidly. Tea smiled on one said, her eyes dancing.

            "What were you doing at my door, you stalker," Tea teased. Kaiba chuckled, kissing Tea's nose.

            "What a stalker always does" Kaiba said. Tea laughed, walking down the stairs with Kaiba beside her.

             Mokuba was eating cereal in the kitchen, legs swinging back and forth. He jerked his face to the young couple and smiled cheerfully at them.

            "You guys take too long, you know," Mokuba said. Kaiba messed with his younger brother's hair and smiled. The threesome ate breakfast together, having a pleasant conversation of things going that week. All three were laughing, smiling, and having a good time. Tea looked at her watch.

            "Oooo, It's 7:00. Seto, we better get going. I'm going to get my purse outside." Tea said, while running upstairs. Kaiba nodded.

            "I'll go start the car," Kaiba added, "See ya after school, Mokuba." Mokuba smiled.

            "Okay, bye."

            All three were separated. Mokuba was still eating his 2nd bowl of cereal, Tea was closing the door and getting her purse, and Kaiba was shutting his car door and starting the car. All three looked around, sighed, and continued doing their regular routines.

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            Yami sat behind Kikyo, admiring the back of her. He smiled, truly amazed that he was lucky enough to have such a girl. He watched quietly as the young girl gazed at the sky through the window, her head leaning on her elbow.

            Kikyo looked at him with the corners of her eyes. Yami caught this and immediately went back to doing his work. She smiled, moving her elbows to his desk and staying in the same position that she used to be in. She eyed him playfully and naturally, her dark black eyes dancing. Yami pretended to not notice, but his face showed that he wanted to smile. Kikyo realized this.

            She touched Yami's hand that was holding he pen. Yami stopped and stared at Kikyo. Kikyo smiled with gentleness and peace. Yami smiled at her, gazing into her eyes.

Their teacher's voice beginning and the door being shut immediately interrupted their utopia.

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            Max typed endlessly into the computer data and resources concerning his company. He searched through all of the companies, analyzing their statistics and income. His mouse pointed to KaibaCorp. Max stopped and stared at the name, a feeling of anger and envy flooding into his veins.

            It was annoying. Kaiba had everything everyone wanted. He was number one at everything. He was everything and yet he was filled with so much greed that he wasn't completely happy. Kaiba just couldn't have enough.

            Max sneered. Kaiba should be happy. Not every one has it good like him. Not everyone got their job by just winning a stupid chess game. Not everyone got their job by standing around ordering everyone around. Other people actually had to work to get a living. Other people had to do what they least wanted to do to get where they wanted.

            To him, Kaiba was an obnoxious being whose only goal was to put people down enough for them to realize that he was the best. To him, Kaiba didn't know what "hard work" meant. To him, Kaiba didn't know what it meant to have been tortured and threatened his whole life, knowing that any second is a second worth living. And any second, his life could be washed away just by a click of a finger. But he did. Max did. He had to work to earn a living for his brother and him. He had to do things…things that he didn't even want to do to keep it.

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Flashback

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            Max watched as Kaiba placed his magic card Reborn. He smiled inwardly. Such a stupid person to think he win that easily.

            His hand crept to his face down magic card, waiting for that right moment for defeat. But all of a sudden, his worst nightmare came true.

            He jerked his head to find a man in a leather black suit sitting behind his brother, Don Don. Don Don didn't seem to notice. His brother's face shown brightly, sitting at the edge of his seat, his brownish black hair resting just above his face. His eyes shimmered with the admiration and pride for Max's awaited victory.

            But there was one problem that kept Mark from winning. His uncle. His uncle demanded him to forfeit the tournament when in the finals with Kaiba, saying it wasn't time to destroy the young billionaire. His uncle thought highly of him. One of the many qualities Max favored. That his uncle never had a doubt that he and his brother could succeed.

            Max respected his uncle to a high extent. After all, it was he who brought his brother and he in a decent environment. His uncle never abused them physically or verbally. He was smarter than that. Instead, he used their passion against them to force them to do what he wanted.

            And what his uncle wanted him to do now was to lose. Max didn't want to and he didn't intend to, but he was deathly wrong.

            He watched as the man pointed the silver pistol at his brother's head. He watched in horror as the man sat still, his hand never shaking away from Don Don. Max's hand quivered, but finally moved its place on the card. He looked down.

            Kaiba won.

            A few seconds after, Max jerked his head to where the man used to be. But he was nowhere to be seen. His gaze went to his little brother, who still sat there on the edge of his seat, staring at the field with disbelief. His hands gripped the edge of the empty red seat in front of him, biting his lip to fight the urge to cry.

            Max clenched his hands and look down in disappointment. He let his borhter down. His hand crept to the magic card still on the field. He flipped it over. De-spell. A card used to destroy any selected magic, such as Kaiba's Reborn.

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            Max banged his fist silently onto his desk. He calmed himself down by breathing in slowly. He should have won that duel. He should have made his brother proud that day. If it weren't for Seto Kaiba, none of this would have happen. He would have been the world champion, his uncle didn't need to do all this planning, he wouldn't have to do all this work, his brother would have a pure life. They would live perfectly happy lives. But all of that did happen all because of Seto Kaiba. Max thought to himself again, maybe all this work to destroy Kaiba is worth it after all.

Ichigo- and so the plot begins…

Bakura- I thought it began a long time ago?

Ichigo….shut up…

Kaiba- and so the anticipation for reviews begins too…

Bakura- I though that began a long time ago too?

Kaiba- ….shut up….

Bakura- and that is why I should be named the smart one…

Ichigo- our new name is Freaks For The Weird remember? So we're all freaks! United as One!

Kaiba- and so the torture begins..

Bakura- that began a long time ago too --

Ichigo- I KNOW!!! !!! Please review!


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